


The Red Dragon

by mdelpin



Series: Summer of Gratsu 2019 [9]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Dragon war, F/M, Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers, Family, Fantasy, Fear, Friendship, Hope, Love, M/M, Magic, Mates, Mating Bond, Sacrifice, Soul Bond, Soulmates, Takes place in the x-300's, Transformation, Tumblr: FTLGBTales, fairy tail big bang, ft-bb
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-16
Updated: 2019-10-12
Packaged: 2019-10-25 03:36:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 81,528
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17717306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mdelpin/pseuds/mdelpin
Summary: Natsu Dragneel is a unique child, the offspring of a red dragon and a human. While he presents as human most of the time, sometimes for short periods, Natsu finds himself in the body of a dragon.One such afternoon he sneaks off in pursuit of a scent that seems to be inviting him to follow — leading him to Gray Fullbuster, a young boy whose whole life has recently been turned upside down by a red dragon.A friendship between the two boys soon blossoms and a bond is forged that can't easily be broken. Faced with many obstacles, Natsu and Gray will have to fight to ensure their love is strong enough to surpass a hatred borne of tragedy.Next Scheduled Update: October 26th





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Selenba](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Selenba/gifts), [EclipsingParadise](https://archiveofourown.org/users/EclipsingParadise/gifts).



> This story was originally inspired by watching How To Train Your Dragon and imagining Natsu as Gray's dragon. It was meant to be a one-shot for an event I was participating in and the more I set to plotting it the more it grew outside of my control. I have been working on it almost exclusively since November and it is my entry for the Fairy Tail Big Bang, a writer/artist collaboration event on Tumblr.
> 
> I will link the art as soon as it is up.
> 
> This story is currently 2/3 finished and will publish every two weeks. 
> 
> I would like to thank my artist [@selenba](http://selenba.tumblr.com/tagged/ebsart) who is not only an amazing artist but also a lovely friend. It was an absolute pleasure to work with you, love!
> 
> I would also like to thank [EclipsingParadise](https://archiveofourown.org/users/EclipsingParadise) for reading every chapter, sometimes out of order and giving me her honest feedback. It seems fitting that you were involved in my other epic with dragons. ;) 
> 
> Last but certainly not least, I would like to thank [MiyuTanemura](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiyuTanemura) for not only being incredibly patient with me but keeping me focused and not ever letting me give up, even when I really wanted to. You are also an amazing friend. You have no idea how many variations she had to listen to over the months!
> 
> If you are interested in reading other stories entered in this event check out the Tumblr event blog [@ft-ez-bb](https://ft-ez-bb.tumblr.com) where they will all be posted or check out the AO3 ones in the event collection [Fairy Tail Big Bang 2019](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Fairy_Tail_Big_Bang_2019).
> 
> One last shoutout to my friends at ftlgbtales for putting up with me on a regular basis.

Disclaimer: All Fairy Tail Characters Belong To Hiro Mashima 

Chapter 1 

Natsu Dragneel walked around the main room of his cave trying to find something to entertain him. His father and uncle had been talking about magic for the last few hours, and they seemed to have completely forgotten about him. He sighed, as usual, there was not much to keep an eight-year-old boy entertained inside the vast space that he called home. He tried to practice his fire magic but soon lost interest. He pretended that a stick he had collected was a wooden sword and tried to fight his shadow, but he got overly excited and set his makeshift sword on fire instead. That happened a lot. 

He had resigned himself to yet another lonely afternoon when he felt the significant discomfort of his body changing. In just a few minutes his body had transmogrified into that of a small red dragon. Natsu tested his wings and was able to lift himself up quite easily. Looking over to where the two large dragons were still talking, he determined that they were not paying the slightest attention to him. They wouldn't miss him if he stepped out for a little while. Natsu's eyes twinkled with excitement and the anticipation of getting into mischief. 

He slipped out of the main room as quietly as he could and worked his way to the rear exit of the cave. It was positioned in a way that it kept their comings and goings away from any prying eyes from the nearby village. 

He stood at the exit trying to decide which direction to explore. Natsu knew to stay away from the village, his father was determined to keep their existence a secret. But there were plenty of other directions he could go. His heart was racing, he'd never gone off on his own before, and it made him feel bold to do so now. He was going to go on an adventure, and no one could stop him! 

He sniffed the air around him, hoping to catch the scent of an animal he could hunt. Instead, he found a smell that he couldn't remember ever having encountered before. It was a scent that was enticing, it called to him, and he immediately set off to explore it, without a thought as to whether it was wise to do so. 

Flying was one of the things that Natsu loved best. Feeling the wind as it interacted with his body and soaring above the clouds. When he was in the air, he felt free. There was only one problem. 

Natsu felt his body change back as he was flying higher than usual, saw the ground rush at him and panicked. He flailed his arms in the hopes that he could somehow affect his now different body. He fell faster and faster until there was nothing but green and brown in his field of vision. 

He flailed his arms once more trying desperately to grab on to something before hitting the ground. 

"OW," he screamed as branch after branch broke his fall until he was caught well and proper by the scarf that he usually wore around his neck. 

Yeah, flying was great, but the only problem was he never knew how long he was going to remain in his dragon form. He struggled to get free but only managed to almost choke himself. How was he going to get out of this one? 

o-o 

Gray Fullbuster was also an eight-year-old boy. He'd suddenly found himself taking a journey on his own, everything he still possessed stuffed into a knapsack. He'd been walking around the woods that had bordered his village for the last few days, eating when he could. 

He honestly couldn't remember much that had happened in the last few days, his mind still caught up in the immense loss he had suffered. He'd just kept walking, knowing that eventually he would either come to a village or die. At the moment he was okay with either. 

Gray was startled out of his stupor by a rather loud crash, somewhere to the west of him. Part of him wanted to ignore the noise, but he couldn't. A noisy "OW" had captured his attention, and the voice had sounded quite young. After what he'd just been through, he couldn't just leave someone to their own devices if he could help. Besides, it's not like he had anywhere he had to be. 

With a slightly annoyed grunt, he turned west and began his search. He looked all around hoping to see any evidence of the noise he'd heard, but nothing seemed to be amiss. 

"Hey!" 

Gray looked around once more but couldn't see anyone. 

"I'm up here!" The voice called out again, and this time Gray was sure it belonged to a kid. He looked up and caught his breath, there was indeed a boy hanging on to a tree branch that had to be at least twenty feet up. How the hell was he supposed to get him down from there? 

"Let go, I'll catch you." It was only after saying the words that Gray realized how incredibly stupid they were. If the boy did let go and Gray didn't catch him, he could easily break something and then he'd be in even more trouble. Even If Gray did somehow manage to catch him, they would both get hurt. 

"I can't, I'm stuck." The boy took one hand off of the branch and pointed to his neck before returning it to its original position, and Gray could barely make out a piece of fabric that was caught in the branches. He could see the problem now. If the boy let go of the branch he was holding on to, he'd be hung by the scarf that was wrapped around both his neck and the tree branches. 

Gray put his knapsack down and rummaged through its contents until he found what he was looking for, a utility knife he'd managed to rescue from the rubble that was all that was left of his village. He tucked it into the back of his pants and stared at the tree, trying to figure out a way to get up to the boy. 

Gray found the lowest branch that he thought would be likely to support his weight and jumped up, trying to catch it with his hands. His fingers barely touched it the first time, but he was able to grasp it on his second try. He pulled himself up until both his elbows were on the branch, then he used them to hold his upper body as he swung his legs until he had hooked one on the branch and then managed to get himself into a sitting position. The boy was still pretty high above him. 

Gray took a couple of deep breaths, and without looking down, he carefully climbed branch by branch until he was close enough to be able to get a good look at the boy he was trying to help. The boy looked to be about his age and Gray was immediately intrigued. He had pink hair, which Gray had never seen before, and bright green eyes that demanded his attention. Gray, however, was focused on the boy's mouth at the moment. Not only did he not seem scared, but he also seemed to be enjoying himself, if the fanged grin he was sporting was anything to go by. 

"Hang on," Gray said as he tested the branch Natsu was on to make sure it could hold his weight. Once he felt sure it could, he climbed on and shimmied his way over. He grabbed hold of the scarf and took his knife out getting ready to tear it and free the boy. 

"Wait! What are you doing?" The boy's grin was replaced by a look of panic."You can't tear it, that's the only thing I have of my mother!" 

"Your mother died?" Gray asked carefully, his mother had died only a few days earlier and he still couldn't really talk about it. 

"I never met her, she died when I was born, but that scarf was hers." The boy grabbed it protectively in one hand, looking at Gray with a bit of distrust. Gray flinched when he saw how precariously the boy was dangling while holding on with one hand. 

"Well, how else do you expect me to get you down from there?" Gray grumbled, "If I promise I won't tear it, will you please hold on properly?" 

The boy eyed him, staring into his eyes as if he could see into his very soul, it was a bit unnerving. He nodded slowly. 

"I promise." 

"Okay." The boy let go of the scarf and grabbed the branch again. "Do you think you can try something quick, my arms really hurt." 

Gray looked for either of the loose ends of the scarf so that he could try to detangle it. If the boy had given him any other reason, he would have torn through the scarf anyway, but he understood what it felt like to have only one thing left of someone you loved. So Gray continued to look until the loose end was found, it had managed to knot itself around a branch. He detangled the scarf as best he could, at one point pulling so hard he almost choked the poor boy, but he was able to finally release him, and the scarf fell to the ground. 

Then the boy did something unexpected, he let go of the branch, and as he fell, jets of fire appeared under his feet, slowing down his descent. He reached the ground, the grin returning. He looked quite satisfied with himself. Immediately picking up the scarf, he shook the dirt off and placed it around his neck once again. 

Gray worked his way down the tree slowly, and when he made it all the way down, he immediately went over to the boy. 

"How did you do that?" 

"Magic." He grinned excitedly. "Don't you have it?" 

Gray shook his head. "My name is Gray by the way." Gray extended his hand for the boy to shake but he only looked at it in confusion, as if he didn't know what was expected of him. 

"Well?" Gray prodded when he had not received any response to his introduction. "What's your name?" 

"Oh! My name is Natsu, nice to meet you!" He grinned at Gray and looked around while scratching his head. "Where am I?" 

"I don't really know, I was just passing through when I heard you crash into the tree." Gray stopped for a moment puzzled. "How exactly did you end up in that tree, anyway?" 

"I was flying, and then I fell," Natsu said matter-of-factly as if this was a normal occurrence for him. "At least the tree broke my fall." He chirped. He started sniffing Gray with interest, before moving on to the air around him, he looked puzzled. 

"What are you doing?" Gray asked, he'd only just met him but every moment spent with Natsu only led to more questions. 

"I'm trying to see if I can smell the way home but I can't. I guess I must have gone further than I thought." For the first time, he looked nervous, and Gray noticed he was fiddling with his scarf. 

"It's okay, you can stay with me until you find your way home." Gray offered, and when he saw Natsu relax slightly, he added, "For now, it's getting late. We should find a place to set up camp for the night." 

They walked in silence picking up sticks for kindling as they went. Gray had a lot of questions he wanted to ask, but he couldn't think of a way to ask them that wouldn't lead to him having to answer questions of his own. So he remained quiet even though his curiosity was so intense it felt like it had a will of its own. 

Every once in a while, Natsu would start that strange sniffing, and his hands would once again go to his scarf. A few times Gray saw him burying his nose in it, trying to hide the small whine that was coming from his throat. It was oddly endearing, and for a reason he couldn't explain, Gray began to feel responsible for Natsu. 

He was a bundle of energy, and also easily distracted. More than once Gray had to run after him when he took off to chase after a rabbit. He began to think that having Natsu with him was going to be more trouble than it was worth but then Natsu would turn to him with those green eyes and that toothy grin of his and Gray would feel a warmth in his chest that he hadn't felt since his village had been destroyed by that dragon. He knew it was worth the added inconvenience. 

He found a nice clearing under a copse of trees and decided they would camp there for the night. They set the sticks they had collected in a pile and mixed some dry leaves in. Gray opened his knapsack and began to look for his flint to start a fire, but by the time he had found it, Natsu had already lit the fire using his magic. He was staring at the flames thoughtfully, and Gray thought he looked sad. 

"What's the matter, Natsu?" 

Natsu turned towards him with glistening eyes and admitted he'd never slept outside of his cave before. His cave? Gray wasn't sure what to say to that, but it made him feel closer to Natsu. Until a few days ago, it had been the same for him, he'd never slept outside his home. 

Almost as if to lighten the mood, both their stomachs rumbled at the same time, and they laughed together. 

"I guess we should hunt for some food." Gray smiled. 

"Now can I chase rabbits?" Natsu asked with eagerness. He waited for Gray's response, and when he received a nod, he took off with incredible speed. To Gray's surprise, he soon returned with two fat rabbits and a satisfied smile. Maybe having him around wouldn't be so bad after all, it usually took Gray hours to hunt down anything. 

Since Natsu caught their dinner, Gray got to work preparing it. They sat by the fire waiting for the food to cook and Gray shivered, still not used to being outside in the cold night air. Natsu watched him and quietly moved closer. Gray felt a pleasant warmth surround him like a cocoon. 

"How are you so warm?" Gray wondered. 

"It's just my magic." Natsu shrugged as if it wasn't important. 

"Where do you live anyway?" Gray asked, curious as to where this strange boy had come from. 

"I live in the mountains with my dad and uncle," Natsu replied. "We live near a village called Talos." 

"Talos? I've never heard of it. " Their food was finally ready, and they ate in silence, content to sit near each other. Gray shared his water canteen with his new friend. He went to set up his bedroll and promptly realized he didn't have another. 

Natsu looked at the bedroll with interest. "What's that?" 

"It's where I sleep at night." Gray wondered what he should do and decided he didn't care if Natsu shared his bedroll with him. His parents had always taught him to share his things with others, and who knew, it might even help keep his nightmares at bay. "I don't have another, but you're welcome to share it if you want." 

Natsu shrugged his shoulders and after attending to the call of nature crawled into the bedroll and instantly fell asleep. Gray did the same, he put out the fire and crawled into the bedroll as well. It was already warm thanks to Natsu's unusually high body temperature, and Gray felt content. He turned away from Natsu, their backs touching as they both slept. 

o-o 

When Natsu woke up, it took him a moment to remember where he was. Instead of his nice warm cave, he was inside some sort of fabric. Instead of being cuddled up against his father's massive body, there was a boy who looked to be about his age. 

Natsu recalled the boy's name was Gray. Noticing that sometime during the night he must have snuggled up against Gray, Natsu carefully backed away, not wanting to make the other boy uncomfortable. 

Gray was still asleep, and Natsu took this opportunity to get a good look at him. The only other human he'd ever met was Anna. She had taken care of him when he was younger, and she still came to visit him every week. 

Recently she'd been trying to convince his father to let Natsu attend something called school with some other kids she took care of. He wasn't sure what it was all about, but he would like to meet other kids, especially if they were as fun as Gray. He hadn't set foot in Talos since the day he'd been born. 

His father was against the idea because Natsu could not control his impulses very well on his own. Maybe this adventure would help prove to his father that he was wrong. He chose to forget that the only reason he was in this mess was that he hadn't heeded his father's warning in the first place and had flown further away from the mountain than ever before. 

He needed to figure out how to get back home. He knew his father would not be able to find him quickly while he was in his human form but nothing smelled familiar, and his senses were weaker when he was like this. 

He watched Gray sleep a bit longer and felt a warmth in his heart, unlike anything he'd ever felt before. When he'd sniffed him earlier, he'd recognized the scent that had enticed him to fly in this direction. Even though he was unsure of what it meant, Natsu had to admit that he felt strangely at home with him. Like he was where he was supposed to be. He felt a need to protect him too, even though so far it had been Gray who had done the protecting. Gray began to stir in his sleep, and Natsu decided to get up and explore their immediate surroundings for a source of water. He thought maybe they could have some fish for breakfast. 

He found a tall tree and in a moment of uncharacteristic foresight, he took off his scarf. He hung it on a low branch and climbed as high as he dared. Holding on to the wide tree trunk, he looked in all directions until he spotted something that looked like it might be a river. He marked the course and climbed down, grabbing his scarf and wrapping it around his neck again. 

He moved quickly and quietly, years of training from his father teaching him the stealth needed to move around undetected. It didn't take him very long to reach the river, and he waded in. He remained very still and watched the fish for a while before plunging in with his hands to catch them. Once he had one, he threw it over to the shore, fishing until he there was a large pile. Natsu liked to eat a lot and from what he had seen Gray was no slouch either. 

With that out of the way, he got to the earnest business of having fun. He swam around, the water feeling very nice against his sweaty skin. He hoped Gray got there soon, Natsu had never had anyone to play with before, and he was excited. He splashed around and swum underwater looking for anything that might keep him entertained. 

When Gray finally got there, Natsu was busy watching a turtle that was sunbathing on a log. He looked up, saw his friend and grinned. "Isn't it great?" 

"You could have told me where you were going," Gray grumbled at him. 

"I figured you'd find me eventually." 

Gray waded into the water and swam over to Natsu. He looked at the turtle for a bit, and Natsu took the opportunity to sneak up behind him and splash him. Gray immediately retaliated, and it quickly escalated into a wrestling match. Both of them laughed and soon came up with other games to play. They swam, and Gray looked genuinely happy for the first time since Natsu had met him. 

"I guess this counts as a bath?" Natsu grinned, and Gray laughed as he agreed with him. 

Natsu got out of the river, every part of him dripping wet. He surrounded himself with his fire and dried off. 

"What does it feel like to have magic?" Gray asked curiously. He had come out of the river as well, and he was shivering. He looked pretty miserable, so Natsu walked over to him. 

"Warm? I don't know, I've always had it. How does it feel not to have it?" Natsu grinned at Gray. 

"I see your point." 

"Do you trust me?" Natsu asked him seriously as he once again covered himself in his fire. He waited for Gray to give him some sort of signal before continuing. When Gray nodded, Natsu wrapped his arms around his friend and extended his flames from his body to Gray's, being careful to keep the temperature at a tolerable level. Within a few minutes, Gray was dry, and Natsu released his fire and let go. He felt happy to have been able to do something for his new friend. 

Natsu sat by the river bank, patting the space next to him. "I thought you might like some fish." 

Gray looked around for a fishing rod of some kind but did not see any. How had he caught the fish? 

"It's a nice change, how are you so good at catching food?" Gray asked as he watched Natsu grab some of the fish and cook them in his hands. 

"My dad and uncle taught me. They wanted me to be able to take care of myself in case something happened to them." Natsu handed some of the fish to Gray and continued to cook some more for himself. "They taught me a lot of other stuff too." 

"How did you end up here all by yourself anyway?" Natsu asked offhandedly, looking at Gray. He could smell a lot of pain in the boy sitting next to him, and he wanted to know more about him, the warmth in his heart already making demands. 

"My village is gone," Gray replied simply and it didn't take much for Natsu to realize that there was a hell of a lot more to that story than Gray was letting on, but he also knew enough not to pry. "I'm trying to find my way to another one." 

"Is there one this way?" Natsu asked, concerned that he might end up in a human village. Even though he was excited about the idea, he couldn't help but remember his father's warnings. If he changed back, that could spell trouble for him. He hoped he was able to find his way home before they reached the next village, but for all he knew they could be walking even further away from his cave. 

Gray scratched his head. "I don't know, I couldn't find a map, but now that we've found this river we should be able to follow it to a village." He smiled at Natsu, trying to reassure him. "They might even know where Talos is, your father must be looking for you." 

Natsu looked at Gray's smile curiously, wondering why it had such an effect on him. He laughed nervously. "He probably is at that, and I probably won't like what he has to say when he finds me." 

Gray laughed at that, "Yeah, I got lost one time, and when my father found me he was not amused." 

Natsu noticed that the smile quickly vanished and was replaced by the bittersweet smell of sadness. Natsu wanted to put his arm around Gray, but he wasn't sure how that gesture would be received. 

"Did something happen to your parents?" 

Gray ignored the question, standing up and getting his things together. "We should get going, we best make use of daylight." 

Natsu let it go, it wasn't like he was disclosing all his secrets either. He walked next to Gray, and they followed the river in silence, each immersed in his own thoughts. 

When it started to get dark, they set up camp again. Natsu once again went hunting, and Gray cooked the meat. Natsu told a few stories of his childhood, times he'd gotten in trouble with Anna. They settled into the bedroll and tried to fall asleep. 

"Hey, Natsu?" Gray had turned on his side and looked at him. 

"Hmm?" Natsu replied sleepily. 

"Why doesn't your father want you to go to the village?" Gray asked, and there was something in his tone that confused Natsu, he wasn't sure what the real question was, but he knew there was more to it than just curiosity. 

"He's worried that I might do something that might make them want to hurt me, I guess?" 

"Hurt you? Why would anyone want to hurt you?" Gray stared at him, and Natsu could see him try to sort it out in his mind. "Is it because of your magic? Does he think you might lose control of it and burn the town down or something?" 

Natsu laughed, "I suppose that might be part of it. I can be a bit reckless sometimes, and I don't always think things through." 

"But if I lived in Talos, could I see you?" Gray asked, and Natsu finally got the question he'd been asking. 

"If you lived in Talos, there's a field that I go to outside of town," Natsu told him seriously. "I could meet you there." 

Natsu could almost see the tension working itself out of Gray's body. He decided to try something. _I will always come when you need me_. He thought the words as hard as he could, sending them through the bond that he could feel forming between them. He didn't understand what it was yet, but he could feel it solidifying the more time they spent together. 

He contained his excitement when he felt Gray jump next to him. "How did you do that?" 

"I don't know exactly, I was curious if I could." Natsu was thrilled, this felt important. 

"Can you hear my thoughts?" Gray asked, looking intrigued. 

"No, it's not like that. I can only send thoughts. You try it, think something really hard at me." 

Natsu waited to hear his friends words in his head, but there was nothing. He was disappointed, but he tried not to show it. 

Gray looked at him expectantly, but Natsu had to shake his head. Gray seemed as disappointed as Natsu felt. "It's okay." 

Natsu looked up at the stars and wondered what his father was doing right now. Natsu knew he must be frantic. They'd never been apart for this long. As much fun as he was having with this boy he needed to get back home. He wondered if he could bring Gray home with him. Anna had said that not all humans hated dragons, that there were others like her, even in the village. He dared to hope, it would be nice to have a playmate. He wanted to believe that he could trust Gray with his secret. Natsu wondered if Gray would like riding him, it would be so fun to go exploring together. Flying together until Natsu could feel himself begin to transform and then explore and hunt and camp until he turned back again. Natsu fell asleep with a happy smile on his face, dreaming of what life would be like with Gray at his side. He wrapped his arms around Gray in his sleep. Gray did not push him away. 

o-o 

_There was fire everywhere. People were screaming and running out of their houses. Gray could feel the heat and hear the roar of the flames as they burned through everything he'd ever known. His parents had grabbed their packed bags even as they ran out of the house. They had been planning on going camping for the first time the following morning and had already packed their supplies._

_His parents didn't spare a look to the village that was crumbling around them, they ran with single-minded determination towards the woods. Gray was terrified by everything that was going on around him, he could see charred bodies everywhere he looked. Houses were collapsing, and still, he couldn't see what was causing it, and he thought that scared him most of all because no one was trying to put out the fires and there was a deafening roar in the sky. He was being pulled along behind his parents, they kept yelling at him to not look and just run._

_He tried, he really did, but when confronted with the charred remain of his best friend's body, he started to scream. He could almost touch his parent's fear as they tried to pull him away, the woods looming ever closer._

_He heard laughing, it was cruel and mocking, and suddenly there it was. The red dragon, covered in flames, hovered above him, his snout opening as he readied his breath attack-_

"GRAY!" Gray could hear a voice calling to him from far away, but he was too caught in the dream, and as much as he hated the next part he wanted to see his parents for as long as he could. 

"GRAY!" This time he heard the voice inside his dream, and he knew what it meant. Natsu, he was in his head. This time it felt less like a call and more like a command and no matter how much he wanted to fight it he was compelled to follow the voice back. 

He opened his eyes and saw Natsu above him, shaking his shoulders slightly and calling to him. Gray wondered if he even knew he'd been in his mind again. Tears were streaming down both their faces and Gray shoved Natsu off him. He needed to sit up, to breathe. He didn't know what he needed, he just couldn't stop crying. Natsu sat behind him and put his arms around him in a tight embrace. Gray struggled against him but Natsu only held on tighter, and Gray relaxed against him slightly. His shoulders shook, and Natsu cried with him. 

When he finally calmed down, he felt Natsu calm down as well, and he asked, "Why are you crying?" 

"You woke me up with your screams, I was scared." Gray was satisfied with that answer until Natsu looked away, he got the feeling there was more to it than Natsu was letting on. 

Who was this boy and how was he so connected to him? The feeling had only gotten stronger the more time they spent together. Gray stared at Natsu, but he wouldn't hold his gaze. 

"What were you dreaming about?" Natsu finally asked. 

"My village was attacked by a fire dragon a few days before you crashed into the tree. It destroyed the whole village and killed everyone, except for me." Gray told him, his words feeling cold and distant considering how the dream had burned through him. He'd felt the need to tell Natsu, feeling that he owed him something after what had just happened. 

He was expecting Natsu to be sad or upset, what he wasn't expecting was the look of complete despair on Natsu's face. 

o-o 

Natsu awoke suddenly, his heart beating rapidly. The hairs on his body stood on end, but he was disoriented. It took him a second to hear the blood-curdling screams of the boy thrashing about next to him. Natsu was overwhelmed, there was so much pain in those screams, he could feel it inside him, and he began to cry even though he had no idea what was going on. The fledgling connection between them was already trying to communicate his mate's distress to him. For this boy was his mate, he could no longer deny what that bond was, and his instincts were screaming at him to do something. 

"Gray," Natsu tried to shake him awake. He called his name again, louder this time. 

He called out to Gray as loudly as he could, trying to break him out of the dream's spell but it did no good. He straddled him, holding on to Gray's flailing arms and screamed into Gray's mind as loudly as he could, calling him back until he saw Gray open his eyes. Even though they appeared blank at first, they soon focused on Natsu. Next thing he knew he was being shoved off Gray's body as the boy sat up, sobs wracking his body. 

Natsu sat behind him and held him tight, not letting go even when Gray fought him, his instincts guiding him. Gray relaxed into the embrace and Natsu was thankful for he had no idea what to do or say. 

Once Gray had calmed down somewhat, Natsu worked up the nerve to ask him what this was all about. "What were you dreaming about?" 

"My village was attacked by a fire dragon a few days before you crashed into the tree. It destroyed the whole village and killed everyone there, except for me." Gray told him not realizing how his words were going to impact Natsu. 

Natsu heard the words in his head, over and over yet they still made no sense. How could it be possible that a fire dragon could be capable of such a heinous act? Fire dragons were good, they were friends to the humans. His own father had made sure of that. 

"Are you sure, it was a fire dragon?" Natsu asked, desperately seeking another explanation no matter how outlandish, even though he knew it was hopeless. 

He was well aware that fire dragons were not easily confused. Their size, the color of their scales and their ability to breathe out fire made them among one of the more distinct types of dragons. If Gray had seen a fire dragon destroy his village, there was no other explanation. 

A dragon like him had destroyed Gray's village, killed his family. Natsu felt like he couldn't breathe, his world was closing in on him, and for the first time in his life, he was ashamed of who he was. 

At the same time, he was receiving a host of emotions from Gray, even though he looked impassive on the outside. 

"It can't be, it just can't be." Natsu muttered to himself "We would never do anything like that, Igneel would never allow it." 

"What do you mean by _we_?" Gray asked, and though his tone was curious, Natsu could feel the change in Gray through the bond. There was now suspicion mixed in with all the other emotions, and Natsu realized he'd been so busy showing off to his mate that he'd shown him too much. His fire magic, his hunting ability, his incredible body warmth. He had to make a choice. 

"Gray," Natsu decided to be honest, maybe it wouldn't be that bad. Gray knew he would never hurt him, right? And just maybe it would help him realize that they were not all the same. He took a deep breath and revealed his secret. "I'm a fire dragon." 

"No, you're not, " Gray yelled, "Is this some kind of joke to you?" 

"I'm a dragon." When Gray's face turned angry, Natsu believed it was because Gray thought he was lying. "I'll show you." Natsu tried his hardest to change back, but nothing happened. His father claimed that someday he'd be able to change at will, but for now, it seemed to be more chance than anything. Even when he was in his dragon form, he never knew how long it would last. 

"Stop playing." Gray was still clearly angry, and he pushed Natsu, hard. Natsu fell back and hit his head on a tree trunk. He felt the blood trickle down from his head and growled. He was afraid, and he tried to make himself look larger. 

"I'm not playing, I really am a dragon." Natsu fought back the tears that were threatening to spill forth. He didn't like this side of Gray. "I can't change at will yet." His eyes pleaded with Gray to believe him, to calm down and go back to the way he'd been before, but Gray seemed to be possessed by something dark and ugly. He grabbed Natsu by the collar of his vest and pulled him up. He pulled back his fist and Natsu yelled, "Stop!" 

Gray seemed to come out of whatever spell he'd been under. He looked at Natsu horrified and put his fist down, "I'm so sorry, I--" 

Natsu never gave him a chance to finish what he was going to say. He ran away even as he heard Gray calling after him. He paid no attention to where he was going, his fear clouding his judgment. He was still having trouble believing that one of his kind could have done something so terrible. 

He'd known some humans hated dragons, but he'd never expected Gray to be one of them. He was shocked to his core, and he wanted to scream, to cry because this couldn't be happening. Nasu had found his mate, and he hated everything Natsu was, and the worst part was that he couldn't blame him. What was he supposed to do? Where could he go? He was lost and even with magic, he was still weak when he was in this form. He had to get away. 

Natsu ran into a giant wall of hellfire. He recognized it right away, and he'd never been so happy to see someone in his life."Uncle Atlas!" 

"What's the matter, Natsu?" Atlas asked with concern, "Are you hurt?" 

When Natsu wouldn't answer Atlas let him climb atop him and took off. 

Natsu heard Gray's voice in his head repeating, _I'm sorry, Natsu. Please come back_ over and over as if he was desperate for Natsu to believe him. He cried harder and thought about not answering, but his instincts would not allow it, so he replied the only thing he could think of. 

_I'll always come when you need me_. 

He held on to his uncle and managed to fall asleep for the flight home. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to publish this on Saturday but I decided to go a little earlier so it didn't get lost in the posts for Gratsu Weekend. I will be posting a bunch this weekend! I hope you enjoy it...

Chapter 2  
  
Igneel had been worried ever since he'd realized that Natsu was missing. He immediately knew what had happened. Natsu was constantly testing boundaries without thinking about the consequences, and he'd surely gotten himself into a situation where he was lost and alone.  
  
Human scents were not as strong as a dragon's, they dispersed more quickly. Even though they'd gone searching for him the moment they'd realized Natsu was missing they knew the odds of finding him were slim. They'd gone out every day since, moving their search pattern further away from their cave, desperately hoping that they had taught him enough to keep him safe.  
  
Igneel was relieved when Atlas had flown in with his sleeping son on his back, but he could tell that his brother was worried. As much as Atlas liked to pretend that he didn't care much for his nephew, Igneel knew it was just an act. He grabbed his sleeping son and rocked him in his arms, bringing his snout close to Natsu's face.  
  
From the moment he had awoken Natsu had done nothing but cry that he didn't want to be a dragon anymore.  
  
"What happened?" Igneel asked his brother as he watched his son continue to cry in a way that tore at his heart.  
  
"I don't know, he ran into me," Atlas said as he thought back to when he'd found his nephew. "He seemed to be running away from someone, there was another human scent mingled with his. He was upset."  
  
"He was wounded, I should heal him," Atlas said worriedly, and Igneel smiled at the concern in his brother's voice.  
  
"He'll be fine," Igneel assured him after he had checked the small boy over. "It just looks like a bump."  
  
"Now then, Natsu." Igneel said sternly, "What do you have to say for yourself?"  
  
It took Natsu the better part of an hour, but he managed to get his story out. Igneel was flabbergasted, not only had his son managed to find his mate at a very young age, but he was a human?  
  
He supposed in a weird way it made sense, human lives were short. Perhaps Natsu had been called out by this Gray without either of them even realizing it. It sounded like he was in a lot of pain and his soul might have called out to its twin. Igneel had heard of such things happening before, just not at such a young age.  
  
That created a problem Igneel had tried to avoid. If Natsu were going to be mated to a human, then he would have to prepare him to live in the human world, not the dragon one as he had planned. If he felt up to it, Natsu could always return to the dragons once his mate died, like Igneel himself had. There were so many things about Natsu that he still didn't know or understand. 

  
Natsu was still not able to change between forms at will, although his dragon nature was apparently trying to assert itself more and more as he got older. Did that mean that at some point Natsu would no longer be able to keep his human form? So many questions Igneel didn't have answers to.  
  
The Dragon War was spiraling out of control, and their side was losing. There had been much talk of trying a new tactic, one based on what Igneel had inadvertently discovered when he'd created a spell that transformed him into a human temporarily, and Natsu had since proven when he had first manifested his fire dragon magic. With some modifications, humans were capable of using dragon magic.  
  
Atlas was working on an enchantment that would allow a dragon to bestow their magic to a human. This would give the dragons a new army to help fight on their side. Igneel was not too fond of this plan, it felt too short-sighted. They hadn't done any tests so they had no idea what the effects might be but Igneel understood the desperation.  
  
However, he realized now that if Atlas was successful it might work in their favor. They would be able to hide Natsu among the newly enchanted humans and keep his identity a secret. Natsu could live among the humans, hopefully with his mate being none the wiser to what he was.  
  
Igneel decided then that he would work with Natsu until he could control his form at will. Then he would allow Natsu to attend the school that Anna was running for the orphans in the village. It would be good for him to learn how to interact with other children.  
  
"Natsu," Igneel began, already knowing the answer to his question, "How would you like to go to school?"  
  
After receiving an enthusiastic reply from his son, they went into Natsu's bedroom. Igneel let Natsu snuggle up to him and murmured soft, comforting words to ease his son into sleep, along with the purrs that he knew Natsu loved. Igneel wasn't ready to let him out of his sight so soon after having lost him, so he remained there long after the young boy had fallen into a restless sleep.  
  
This fire dragon that Natsu had told him had attacked Gray's village worried him. He was reasonably sure he knew who was responsible. Deliora had not been happy about Igneel's decision to side the red dragons with the humans. He'd thought Igneel's time with the humans had turned him soft, so he'd challenged him to a fight for leadership of the fire dragons. Igneel had agreed and had managed to defeat him after a long worn out fight. He didn't feel it necessary to kill Deliora for his insolence, opting to exile him instead. That had apparently been a mistake he now regretted.  
  
  
o-o  
  
Gray watched Natsu run away, and he was furious at himself. He had not only hurt his friend, his only friend, but he'd scared him as well. So what if Natsu liked to pretend to be a dragon? He had fire magic, of course, he would want to think that. What kid wouldn't?  
  
He'd overreacted, blinded by his rage and the terror from the dream. He'd tried to call him back, but he knew that Natsu would not return willingly and Gray couldn't really blame him. He also knew that he wouldn't be able to find Natsu if he didn't want to be found. Gray had seen enough of how Natsu moved and hunted to realize that Natsu was very comfortable in nature, much more so than Gray.  
  
He thought as loud as he could, trying to send his thought out to Natsu like he'd tried to do the night before.  
  
_I'm so sorry. Please come back._  
  
Over and over he repeated the thought, hoping against hope that Natsu would hear him and return. He'd almost given up when he heard Natsu respond with _I will always come when you need me._  
  
Gray waited for anything else, another message, a return but there was nothing. Natsu was gone, and now Gray was alone again. Except he was now even lonelier than before, and he felt terrible about what he'd done.  
  
He stayed at their campsite until the next morning. He was hungry, had not been able to hunt anything or catch fish without a fishing rod, even though he'd tried. Natsu was not coming back, he'd scared him away. Gray hoped that Natsu's father had found him by now and that he was on his way home. Someday Gray would make it to Talos, and he would see that field that Natsu had told him about, and he would apologize appropriately for what he'd done. For now, all he could do was to keep walking in search of the next village.  
  
It took him a couple of days, but he found it. It was smaller than his own village, but that was fine. Only, now that he was there he didn't know what he was supposed to do. He'd only thought as far as getting to a village.  
  
He was an eight-year-old boy, what could he really do? He could try to find someone to apprentice under, or he could try to find a job that would allow him to take care of himself. Gray sat at the edge of a fountain observing the village. He noticed quite a few people giving him curious looks, but none of them stopped.  
  
His stomach rumbled at the smells coming from the bakery, he hadn't eaten very well since Natsu had left. He looked through his knapsack to see if there were any jewels. He rather doubted it, they had been going camping after all.  
  
He didn't like the idea of begging, but he liked the idea of stealing even less. He worked up his courage and made his way to the bakery, he would ask for food and offer to do some work in return.  
  
He opened the door and waited patiently for the baker to finish attending to customers. Once the shop was empty, he walked towards the counter.  
  
"Excuse me, ma'am?" Gray tried to use the best manners his mother had taught him.  
  
"Well, what is it, brat? I don't got all day!" The woman looked at him with impatience, there was no smile or kindness to her demeanor, and Gray froze, forgetting every word he'd rehearsed in his head while he waited.  
  
She looked at him with a sneer and came around the counter, broom in hand.  
  
"Surely, you don't mean to touch my student with that broom, Fiera." A smooth voice interrupted the baker's movements, and Gray looked up to see a tall woman with a pale complexion and short dark hair. Her hands were at her hips, and she looked decidedly unhappy with the baker's planned actions.  
  
"You're lucky Ur noticed you kid." A boy with light blue hair distracted him from the two women's conversation. He gave Gray a friendly smile but all it did was remind him of the smile he'd lost, and it made his heart ache all over again.  
  
Gray made up his mind right there that whoever this boy was, he would not make the same mistake twice. Gray would not let him in so quickly.  
  
"I'm Lyon." Lyon extended his hand, and Gray shook it.  
  
"I'm Gray." Gray looked at the woman that was still arguing with the baker with unabashed curiosity. Who was she, and why had she come to his rescue?  
  
"That's Ur, she's my teacher," Lyon remarked. "She took me in after my parents died and it looks like she might be thinking of doing the same for you."  
  
"I'm not alone," Gray replied immediately, they might have good intentions but they were still strangers, and it was not a good idea to show he was vulnerable.  
  
"Yes you are, you're not from around here." Lyon smiled. "Relax, Ur is good people, she won't hurt you. She saw you sitting at the fountain earlier and wanted to make sure you had someone to take care of you before we went home."  
  
"What does she teach?" Gray asked, mostly as a way to buy time while he thought this through.  
  
"Magic." Lyon answered, "She's a powerful mage, best in this part of the world, and someday I'm going to surpass her." Lyon grinned cockily. "Come on, let's go outside."  
  
Lyon left the bakery, and Gray found himself following.  
  
"Did you say magic?" Gray asked, suddenly very interested in the woman who had decided to act on his behalf. He would love to see Natsu's face when he learned that Gray had magic too! If he ever saw him again, that was.  
  
They made their way back towards the fountain and Lyon began to play with the water, freezing the sprays and unfreezing them. He grinned when he saw Gray watching. He did something strange with his hands and handed Gray a small block of ice. Gray turned it over in his hands.  
  
Ur approached the boys with two pastries that she had gotten from the baker. She handed one to each of them. Gray thanked her and quickly devoured his, trying very hard not to look at the one in Lyon's hands. He was so hungry. Lyon just handed him the other one, and he quickly devoured that as well.  
  
Gray heard Lyon telling Ur his name as he ate. He watched them talking, trying to get a feel for these people that seemed to want to insinuate themselves into his life. A few moments later, Ur walked towards him, and the interrogation began.  
  
"Why are you here all alone?" Ur asked Gray directly.  
  
"I'm not." Gray tried to meet her gaze, but found he couldn't.  
  
"You're alone." Ur ignored his obvious lie, her expression serious, "The question is why? Did something happen or are you running away from someone?"  
  
Gray reminded himself that he could still walk away. He didn't owe this woman anything. Her eyes were probing him, but she seemed kind, and she could teach him magic, and the fact remained, he had nowhere else to go.  
  
"My village was destroyed about a week ago," Gray said honestly, his mouth dry as he parroted the information. Every time he said the words out loud it brought the pain back and he pressed his fingernails down on his palms until he could focus on that pain rather than the one inside him. "My parents were killed."  
  
"You're from Isvan?" Ur covered her mouth with her hand. "I heard about what happened there, you have my condolences. It was a fire dragon, wasn't it?"  
  
Gray nodded, not knowing what else to say. It was still too fresh for him, he couldn't really talk about it yet.  
  
"Have you been by yourself all this time?" Ur asked, impressed that he had survived so well at such a young age.  
  
"Mostly." 

  
"Well, my name is Ur, and you're welcome to come with us. We don't have much, but we make do." Ur offered her hand in greeting and Gray shook it.  
  
He'd already made his decision, so he walked with them as they made their way up the mountain. Gray thought about Natsu, he would see him again someday, but for now, he had to follow his own path.  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will return to every other Saturday after this so the next chapter should be up on March 16th!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 

Gray and Lyon stood in front of a freshly dug grave, each holding a bouquet of flowers. It had been six years since Ur had taken Gray in. She'd always seemed so much larger than life, to see her taken by something as mundane as disease seemed almost insulting to her memory. They had taken care of her as best they could, but in the end, they had only been able to make her comfortable. 

Gray had never regretted going home with her and Lyon. Sure, Lyon was a jerk and not the most comfortable person to live with, but it had been nice to not be alone, and Ur had taught him everything she'd promised. 

She'd trained them hard, no matter what the weather. It was not unusual for her to have them run through the snowy mountains in their underwear in the middle of a storm until they no longer felt the cold. It had been miserable at first, but with time it became as natural to them as breathing. 

She was a strict taskmaster and made sure to balance their magic training with their schooling, insisting that the two went hand in hand. Even though she'd given both Gray and Lyon the annoying habit of stripping their clothes as part of their training, she'd also shown Gray that his mind was his biggest asset. Ice Make magic was a magic of creation, and the only limit to its power was his own imagination. He'd taken that lesson to heart. 

The biggest reason why he'd loved Ur, however, was that she'd never tried to replace his parents, she'd always given him the love he'd needed, but she'd never forced it on him. She'd simply carved a place in his heart next to them, and he would miss her terribly. 

He'd taken to Ice Make magic, practicing for hours daily, driven by both his hatred of the red dragon whose name he now knew to be Deliora and his determination to surprise Natsu when he saw him again. There was a fair amount of mostly friendly rivalry with Lyon as well. All these things had worked to make him stronger, his ice magic almost rivalling that or Ur herself. 

Even though he'd only met him for a few days, he'd never forgotten Natsu. If he closed his eyes, he could still see the pink hair, the bright green eyes, and the fanged grin and he would wonder what had happened to him. Had he ever made it home? 

Some days he would get these feelings that didn't seem to make sense, and he would pretend that he was feeling what Natsu was feeling and it made him feel close to him all over again. 

Lyon put his bouquet down on the grave and Gray did the same. 

Gray heard Lyon whisper to Ur that he was sorry he never got to surpass her. He backed away wanting to give Lyon some privacy as he said his goodbyes to their Master. 

Lyon rejoined Gray when he was done and asked the question that was on both of their minds. 

"What do we do now?" 

They had decided to stay together, but they had not discussed any future plans. It had felt disrespectful to Ur to consider it while she was still with them. 

"I want to go to Talos." Gray immediately replied. 

"Not that again, you don't even know if that guy is still there," Lyon replied looking mildly annoyed, "It's a fool's errand." 

"Perhaps, but I asked around, it's not that far from here, and they are looking for magic users for their Village Guard," Gray informed him with a smile. He knew this would get the other's attention. "Even if it ends up being a fool's errand, we can at least find jobs there." 

When Lyon agreed, Gray could barely contain his excitement. After all these years he was finally going to get to see Natsu again. Maybe. They went home to pack their belongings and spend one last night in the home Ur had provided for them, but it felt strangely cold without her in it. 

o-o 

Natsu had worked day and night with Igneel and Atlas for months to get a reasonable level of control over his body. He could now change at will and keep himself in either form for as long as he wanted. It had been Igneel's only condition for him attending school and Natsu had very much wanted to go. To meet other kids, he thought it would be a great adventure. 

The excitement, however, was very short-lived. Going to school required Natsu to sit still for long periods of time, listening to things he didn't care about while expecting him to also be quiet. None of these were things he was used to or was particularly good at. About the only good thing to be said about it was that they served food and there were other kids there. At the end of the first week he'd asked his father to stay home, but to his surprise, Igneel didn't agree. So Natsu continued to attend. 

It had been difficult at first for him to make friends since all the kids seemed to already know each other, but they had warmed up to him soon enough. His big toothy smile and penchant for getting in trouble quickly made him a favorite among the other kids. 

He drove Anna completely insane, Natsu had a short attention span and could be very disruptive. More than once she had threatened to talk to Igneel about him, but nothing ever came of it. The only one who could even keep him under control was a girl by the name of Erza Scarlet. 

His favorite times of the day where lunchtime and the last class of the day which was taught by one of Anna's friends, a man by the name of Andrius. He guided the kids in hand to hand combat in the field at the bottom of the mountains. He would then divide them up into groups to practice, watching to make sure that they didn't injure each other. Natsu learned a lot, even if Erza insisted on showing him up, most of the time. She was crazy strong. 

At home, Natsu trained with his father and Uncle in Fire Dragon magic, which he was absolutely not allowed to use in front of the other children. 

There was much talk of the Dragon War both in the cave and from the villagers. His Uncle Atlas spent most of his time locked up in his room or with four other dragons poring over spell scrolls. 

One day, about two years later Atlas came out of his room, an excited look on his face. He called out to his brother. 

"I've done it, Igneel. I've figured out how to enchant humans with our magic without negatively affecting their lifespan." Atlas looked very pleased with himself. 

Igneel looked proud for his brother, but was noticeably less excited about the prospect itself. It was the culmination of everything they'd been working towards for so long, so Natsu was confused by his father's reaction. 

"I suppose we should let Anna know," Igneel replied thoughtfully. 

"Anna?" Natsu asked curiously, "What does she have to do with anything?" 

"Do you remember the other dragons that have been coming here?" Igneel asked him. 

Natsu nodded. Weisslogia, Skiadrum, Metalicana, and Grandine had been constant visitors to their cave and Natsu was very familiar with them. They'd even sparred with him a couple of times to help him train. 

"Each one of them has agreed to adopt one of your friends in exchange for enchanting them with their magic. We want to see the effects before applying it to others who might end up on the battlefield." 

"You're going to send them to the war?" Natsu asked, horrified that something like that could happen to his friends. 

"No, of course not." Igneel assured him, "We would never send children to fight for us. We just want to make sure it's safe." 

Somehow that thought did not make Natsu feel any better. 

"You should be proud Natsu, it's thanks to you that we can do this." Atlas beamed at him. 

"Me?" Natsu wondered aloud, "I didn't do anything." 

"The fact that you exist in your human form and still use your dragon magic was what made me think we could manage it," Atlas explained. 

"They won't be as strong as you, but I can guarantee that your sparring matches will be much more interesting in the future." Igneel tried to make light of the situation, but Natsu knew him well enough to know that something was bothering him. "At least you won't have to hide your magic from them anymore. That should make you happy, I think." 

Natsu did not feel happy about this at all, but he couldn't explain why. He was worried for his friends, what if his uncle's spell didn't work? What if they died for some war that they didn't understand? "There are four dragons, but five kids, is Uncle Atlas going to adopt one too?" 

"No kid, you're ours." Atlas winked at him. 

"What do you mean?" Natsu asked, not understanding the implication behind those words. 

"Sometimes, the best way to hide something is in plain sight." Igneel smiled, looking quite satisfied with whatever they were up to. "We've made sure that no one outside of a few red dragons knows of what you are. They know of your birth, but they think you're a regular dragon like the rest of us. Someday you will lead them, but for now, you belong with the humans." 

"For your own safety, it's imperative that your friends think you are the same as them. As far as they're concerned, you were just the first one. No one should know you're a dragon." 

"You will train with them, and help them ease into their magic, they trust you." Igneel held Natsu's gaze, wanting him to understand the importance of his words. "Together you will create a Guard that can protect the village from dragons or anything else that arises. You will use your magic to help others." 

"What do you mean, I belong with them? I belong here with you." 

"Natsu, you will always belong with us, You _are_ a dragon, but you're also human. Your mate is human, fate has already made the choice for you." 

"You mean I can go search for him?" Natsu asked excitedly. Once he had gotten over the initial self-hatred he'd wanted nothing more than to go searching for Gray. To tell him that it was okay, but Igneel had forbidden it. 

"When the time's right, he'll come to _you_. It's not going to be easy though Natsu, you know how he feels about us. You don't know whether that's changed or not." 

"He was sorry, I heard it in my head, and I felt it in my heart." 

"I've no doubt that he was sorry he hurt you. I'm not sure about the rest. I know your love for him is pure, but when you do meet him again, you need to take it slow, Natsu. Hatred like that burns bright." 

Natsu changed the subject. "Who will be adopted?" 

"Everyone but the redhead, she's not an orphan, and she already possesses magic." 

"Do they know?" 

"Not yet, there was no sense in saying anything if Atlas was not able to finish the spell. This war has gone on long enough. We can only hope this will be what turns the tide in our favor." 

"But you don't agree?" 

"Why do you say that?" Igneel looked amused, but there was also something else, pride? 

"You don't seem very happy about it, despite Uncle working on it for so long." 

"That's not exactly true," Igneel sighed. " I just worry about whether we're doing the right thing. We don't really know how this will affect the humans, but war is a horrible thing, and this one is taking a toll on both dragons and humans. 

"Remember this Natsu," Igneel said as he looked towards his brother who was going outside for the first time in weeks. "the lesser of two evils is still evil. I can't feel good about this course of action." 

In the end, Natsu did as he was asked, even though it pained him to lie to his friends. He showed them his "newly" acquired magic while hiding his true nature. He told them about how he had been enchanted by a dragon and if they wanted they could do the same. Natsu brought them to his cave for the first time since they'd known each other and introduced them to the dragons, who did their best not to scare them. 

It suddenly dawned on Natsu that the dragons visits to his cave over the years had not had anything to do with Atlas' work on the enchantment, it had been to observe him. It had never occurred to him that the dragons had based their decision on whether to go through with this plan on him. 

The day soon came when the dragons explained to the children about the enchantment and what it would do, and Natsu could see from their faces that they were excited by the idea of having magic, but had no real understanding of what they agreed to. He could only hope they never came to regret it. 

It was amusing to see how closely the dragon's personalities matched the children they were adopting. Gajeel, who had always been gruff and short-tempered picked Metalicana, the Iron Dragon. Since he was the oldest, he volunteered to go through the process first. It was over rather quickly and appeared to be painless. Metalicana cast a spell on Gajeel, and outside of glowing a bit as the seal materialized and disappeared inside of Gajeel, there was not much to it. 

The younger kids relaxed and Sting offered to go next. Sting, who had always had a sunny disposition had picked Weisslogia who was known as the Holy Light Dragon. Rogue, the gloominess to Sting's cheer, followed with Skiadrum, the Shadow Dragon. Little Wendy who was always worried about everyone and wanted to be a healer when she grew up was enchanted by Grandine, a Sky Dragon capable of healing magic. Natsu never disclosed who his dragon was and both Atlas and Igneel played the part at different times. This was yet another layer of protection for Natsu and his identity. 

They had all agreed to live in Igneel's cave for observation. Nothing like this had ever been attempted before, and Igneel was concerned there might be some side effects Atlas might not have anticipated. Atlas checked on them daily, making sure that they were progressing well. 

This arrangement suited Natsu just fine, his cave was quite large, reaching deep into the mountain. Each dragon and child was given a large room to live in. For the first time ever, children were running around the cave, playing hide and seek and laughing. It was something Natsu had always dreamed of. 

They were all taken out of Anna's school and were trained exclusively in dragon magic, with Natsu helping to translate the dragons instructions into human equivalents that the others could understand. 

Since he had been the first they made him their leader, the one they looked up to, and Natsu felt the lie deeply, but as his father had explained, it was for the good of everyone. They became a large family of humans and dragons, and Natsu could not for the life of him understand why there were dragons that would be against humans. 

Atlas' spell had been offered to the other allied dragon races, and there were adult humans training in other caves around the world, some were already on the battlefield using their new powers to take down enemy dragons. They had been dubbed Dragon Slayers, a term which Natsu hated but the others excitedly adopted to describe their small group as well. 

His father had told him their plan seemed to be working well so far. He'd also kept his promise, none of Natsu's friends had been anywhere near a battle, much to their disappointment. They were eager to show off their skills. Instead, his father and Anna created the Village Guard in Talos, a group made up of mages responsible for the protection of the village. Any mage who took part in it was paid wages, and all the Dragon Slayers were a part of it. 

They had already used their magic to catch thieves, help the villagers and they'd even chased away a small dragon or two, although they had yet to kill one. Natsu played his part well, acting disappointed when the dragon flew away, but personally, he hoped he never had to kill one of his kind, with one exception. There was one particular red dragon that he wouldn't mind taking out. 

Natsu had never forgotten the dragon that had killed Gray's parents and destroyed his village. The same dragon that had made him ashamed of who he was until his father had explained who Deliora was and what had happened. Natsu's shame had been replaced by the determination to avenge Gray and his family, while also correcting his father's mistake. He wanted to help restore the otherwise good name of the fire dragons. 

Natsu replaced his unpleasant thoughts of Deliora with those of his mate, although it had now been six years since he'd seen him. He wondered what Gray was doing and when he was going to see him again. Every time he would get frustrated by the limitations the Guard imposed on him he would remind himself that all this had been put in place so that he could someday have a regular life with Gray. A life where he could hide in plain sight, without his draconic heritage being an issue. It wasn't so bad most of the time. There was really only one problem, and she was currently headed his way. The tall, red-haired monster known as Erza Scarlet, his friend, but unfortunately also his Captain. 

Erza had not loosened up any as she had grown. She had gone from bossy schoolgirl straight into a bossy teenager. If possible, she had gotten even more uptight. Natsu had been the original captain of the guard, but his penchant for destruction and lack of any planning outside of brute force made it rather clear to everyone that a replacement was needed, and Erza had been the logical choice. 

Natsu had been a little hurt, but even he knew it was the right decision. Erza was calm, as long as you followed the rules. She was logical, capable of elaborate plans that made good use of all her resources. She was steadfast in the face of an adversary and more to the point, she could be scary as hell, so most people followed her commands out of fear of reprisals. 

Natsu waited for her to reach him as he sat on his favorite spot in the village. It was the roof of one of the few flat buildings. He enjoyed looking out at the lake that bordered Talos, and the mountains beyond it. He was enjoying a rare day off, and he was dreading having to interrupt it. He was supposed to meet his best friend Sting later in the day for a sparring session on the field they used to practice. The sun was shining, the water the purest blue he'd ever seen, and he'd been enjoying a fairly relaxing morning. He began to feel something strange inside of him when Erza finally called for him. 

"Hey, Natsu!" Erza called from below, knowing exactly where he would be. 

"What do you want? It's the first day off I've had in weeks." Natsu made sure to sound irritated, as he knew it would annoy her. To his surprise, she completely ignored his tone. 

"We've got some new recruits that are interested in joining the Guard." 

"That's nice, good luck testing them." Natsu waved her away. 

"Can you just get down here?" Erza's face was turning red, but still, she attempted to keep herself under control. That was interesting. 

"You don't need me for that, Erza." Natsu pointed out, calmly. "It's my day off. I'm sure any of the others would be happy to spar with them." 

"Normally I would, but one of them has been asking about you." Erza gritted through her teeth. " I thought you might want to see what it's about." 

"Me?" Natsu's curiosity was piqued, he wasn't exactly well known outside of the village. He jumped down from the building using his jets to slow down his descent. Erza rolled her eyes at him an led the way to the Guard's headquarters. 

"What did they say?" Natsu asked, he felt nervous, but he didn't know why. 

"He asked if we knew of someone with fire magic that went by the name of Natsu." 

Natsu grabbed Erza by the shoulders and asked urgently. "What did he look like, Erza?" He didn't want to get too excited, but who else could it be? 

That's when the scent hit him, it was the same as before, but also different. It had aged and become more complex, like the fine wines that Rogue liked to drink sometimes. It exploded inside Natsu's nose, enticing him to find its owner all over again. 

"Just like that." Erza pointed at a black haired boy that was staring at him openly. His expression was hard to read as Natsu walked up to him. 

Natsu had to work very hard to keep his expression impassive. He broadcast a thought at Gray, hoping that their connection still worked. _Meet me at the field past the edge of the village after your test._

He saw Gray give him a small nod, disguised as running his fingers through his hair. Natsu was beyond excited to see that he could still communicate through their bond but he hid it as best he could. 

"I heard you were asking about me?" Natsu raised an eyebrow at the black haired boy, his fingers unconsciously moving towards his scarf. 

"I found you." Gray's face broke into a smile, so warm and happy that Natsu had no defense against it. "I see you're still wearing that scarf." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They are fourteen years old at this point.


	4. Chapter 4

"Looks like we're not going to get the chance to spar today after all," Sting grinned in anticipation as he looked at the two recruits, "Fresh meat." 

When he noticed that Natsu wasn't paying much attention to him Sting asked, keeping his voice low enough that it would only be heard by the other dragon slayers, "You know this guy, Natsu?" He gave Gray an appreciative once-over. 

Natsu growled, low in his throat, but no less threatening. 

Sting looked at him and smirked, immediately catching on and jumping on the opportunity to tease his best friend. "Oh, I see. Interested already, are we?" 

Natsu did not respond as he trained his attention on the pale blue-haired boy standing next to Gray. He looked very comfortable there, and Natsu couldn't help but dislike him immensely on sight. 

He had a million questions he wanted to ask. What happened after they parted ways, how did Gray learn magic, had he missed him? But Natsu knew he'd have to wait until he was at the field to get his answers, so instead, he decided to test to see how much of their time together Gray actually remembered. 

"So, how does it feel to have magic?" Natsu asked watching Gray's face, waiting to see a spark of recollection. 

Gray gave Natsu a small smile and answered, "Cold? At first at least." 

Natsu's heart fluttered, remembering the answer he had given when asked the same question all those years ago. He felt this ridiculous happiness at seeing Gray again after they had left things so badly. His arrival signaled the beginning of everything that Igneel had worked so hard to put in place for Natsu. To give them a chance at a happy life, even within all the chaos of the Dragon War. But in all honesty, to see Gray in Talos, to know that he was okay, that already made him feel happier than he had in a long time. 

"Are you ladies done chatting?" Gajeel interrupted, "I thought they were here to join the guard." 

"Sorry." Gray bowed his head in apology, "My name is Gray Fullbuster, and this is Lyon Vastia, and yes, we are interested in joining your guard." 

Erza observed Natsu's interactions with Gray with great interest. Nothing was really known about Natsu's life before he came down from his cave in the mountains to attend school with the rest of them. He never talked about it, but there had always been rumors around the village. 

People said that Natsu was the son of the village's previous healer, a woman named Porlyusica, and a strange man that had appeared in the village one day. She had died giving birth to Natsu, and the man had taken him and moved to the mountains, never to be seen again. Anna was the only one that had remained in contact with him, helping to take care of Natsu in what must have been inhospitable conditions, but she refused to discuss it no matter how many times Erza has asked. 

Now here was this boy, who seemed like he might know Natsu from before. Erza's curiosity was bursting, but she could be patient. She moved forward to introduce herself. 

"My name is Erza Scarlet, I'm the Captain of the Guard." Erza began her speech with zeal, and all the dragon slayers immediately looked bored. It was not unusual for wizards to come looking to join, but very few of them ever passed the tests. 

"Before we can take you on, you will have to pass two tests. The first one is a purely physical test, you will be sparring with one of our guards to show your fighting ability. Although we usually use our magic, there are often times when it's not the best course of action. In the second test, you will fight another guard while using your magic." 

"Is that little girl part of your guard?" Lyon asked while pointing at Wendy. 

"She is," Erza replied evenly, and Natsu could see from her amused smile that Erza had already made up her mind as to who Lyon would be matched up with for the second test. 

Lyon could apparently not contain an arrogant smirk from crossing his features, no doubt thinking that the test couldn't really be that difficult if a young girl such as Wendy could manage it. Gray elbowed Lyon and glared at him. Natsu couldn't wait to see the look on the guy's face when he learned what it was like to go up against a dragon slayer. He glanced over at Wendy, and when he noticed she seemed nervous, gave her a reassuring smile. 

"For the most part we deal with problems that affect the village, these could be thieves, bandits or even monsters. Occasionally we take missions. As you know, we are in the middle of a war, and although Talos has been able to stay out of it so far, we are fully aware that we might come under dragon attack at any moment. Several of our members are so-called dragon slayers, they specialize in a type of magic that is very effective against dragons." 

"You kill dragons?" Gray asked, his eyes immediately hardening into a look of determination. "I'd join for that alone." 

Natsu's heart sank at the words, the time apart had not changed anything. Gray still felt the same way, Igneel had been right. 

"Well, it's my day off, and you don't need me for this," Natsu told Erza before turning away and walking towards the field, no longer as excited as he had been. He needed to think this through. 

He didn't notice the others looking after him in shock, nor Gray's sad expression that he wasn't going to stay and watch him fight. 

O-o 

Natsu paced back and forth. What was he supposed to do? All of a sudden he was eight years old again and ashamed of who he was. Igneel had set up this whole thing so that he could eventually move into the town and make Gray his mate but what kind of relationship started on a lie? 

He hated that he was both human and dragon. He didn't feel like he was any good at being either, and most of the time he only felt great loneliness that nothing seemed to alleviate. No matter how many human friends he made, he could never tell them who he really was. Most dragons did not know of his existence and those who did, couldn't understand him either. There was no one else like him. 

His father was the closest to understanding his feelings, but Natsu didn't like bringing it up, he knew Igneel already felt guilty about his situation. Then he would get a faraway look in his eyes, and it was almost palpable how much his father missed his mother, and Natsu would be reminded of how he had been responsible for her death. 

There really was nothing for him to do but wait and see what happened. He had years before the mating instinct was strong enough that it would begin to demand a claim. He'd just have to use that time to work at being friends and try to change Gray's mind. Then, maybe he could trust him with his secret. He would take it slow, and maybe keep an eye on that Lyon guy. 

With a plan in mind, Natsu settled down to wait for Gray to show up, at least he hoped that his friend came. He'd left rather abruptly. 

An hour later Natsu could smell someone coming nearer, and immediately recognized Gray's new scent. He soon saw black hair and alabaster skin walking towards him and wondered what else had changed about his mate in the time they had been apart. 

Natsu let Gray look at the field for a few minutes. It was beautiful, especially in the summer sun. He took a deep breath and feigned a cheerfulness he didn't feel. 

"Took you long enough to get to Talos," Natsu grinned. He was happy Gray was here, even if it made things more complicated. 

"I don't recall _you_ coming after me," Gray responded with a smile of his own. 

"About that." Natsu ran his fingers through his hair nervously. He hadn't expected to get into that right away. "I'm sorry I left like that. I shouldn't have left you alone." 

Gray looked down at the grass, when he looked up, Natsu could see the conflicting emotions warring for control. 

"Don't apologize." Gray looked at Natsu, his eyes dark and filled with shame. "I should apologize to _you_. I don't know what came over me. I should never have reacted that way." He gave Natsu a wry smile, "I've regretted that every day since." 

"It's ok, I forgave you a long time ago." Natsu did his best to sound sincere, "What you went through, no one should ever have to go through that. I... understand." 

"Thank you." Gray seemed a bit more relaxed after he'd gotten his apology out. "Where did you go?" 

"I was lucky enough to find my uncle, he brought me home." Natsu smiled, "My dad was not very happy with me. It wasn't all bad though. Thanks to meeting you, I got to go to school and meet some of the other village kids." 

"Thanks to meeting me?" Gray asked confused, "What did I have to do with any of that?" 

Natsu shrugged, not being able to explain his father's reasons without disclosing what he was. "I guess my dad realized I was lonely or something." 

Gray nodded, satisfied. "So, are you one of these dragon slayers too?" 

Natsu nodded, hating to lie to him but not wanting to go against his father's wishes. 

"Have you killed any?" Natsu found he really didn't like the look in Gray's eyes whenever he talked about dragons. It made him feel sick to his stomach. 

"No, and I rather hope I never have to. Killing is not something I enjoy." Natsu replied dryly. "We've scared a few dragons away from Talos, but they weren't large ones. They've stayed away so far." He changed the topic. "So, how did the testing go?" 

"I got my ass kicked in the physical fight, but I won the magic one." Gray smiled, proud of himself. 

Natsu laughed. "Who did you get?" 

"I fought the long-haired guy. Does he always look that pissed off?" Gray wrinkled his brow as he tried to remember the name. "He didn't pull his punches, it felt like I was getting hit by a hammer." He unconsciously rubbed his shoulder. "Punching him wasn't much better." 

"Yeah, Gajeel's pretty tough." Natsu commiserated, having sparred with Gajeel for years. "His magic makes his body as tough as iron. You're still standing though, so I'd say you passed. Who did you defeat with magic? What is your magic anyway?" 

"If you had stuck around you would know," Gray said quietly, and Natsu thought he looked hurt. 

"I'm sorry, once you're in the guard, you'll understand that days off are not something we see a lot of. You learn not to waste them." Natsu could have hit himself when he saw Gray's reaction to his words. "Wait, I didn't mean it like that." 

It was too late though, Natsu could feel Gray distancing himself a little. "I have Ice Make magic, I can control ice however I see fit. Like this." 

Next thing Natsu knew Gray had encased him in a block of ice and stormed off towards Talos. Natsu knew he could have melted the ice quickly, in fact, he could already feel it doing so just from his natural body temperature, but he felt like he deserved the discomfort. Gray had come looking for him, had apologized for his actions all those years ago, and Natsu had made him feel unimportant. He realized to his dismay he didn't even get to ask him about Lyon. He cursed at himself and made his way up the mountain, still encased in ice. 

Igneel saw him come in and laughed at him even as the remaining ice melted handily, no match for the immense heat of the fire dragon's cave. 

"What happened to you?" Igneel asked him. 

"Looks like his boyfriend put him on ice." Sting teased him from where he was sitting in a corner with Rogue, who still looked embarrassed to have lost. "See love, you weren't the only one and Natsu has fire magic." 

Rogue didn't say anything, just hid deeper into the shadows of the cave. 

"Boyfriend?" Igneel looked over at Natsu with interest. 

"Shut up, Sting." Natsu snapped. He looked over at his father. "Gray's here, he showed up today asking for me." 

"That's great news," Igneel eyed his son with confusion, "Isn't it?" 

Natsu groaned in frustration, "You were right, he still feels the same way." 

"I'm sorry, son." Igneel looked over at him again, "Is that why you were covered in ice?" 

"No, he was upset I didn't stay to watch him test," Natsu said before admitting, "I may have said the wrong thing." 

Gajeel snorted, "May have? When do you ever say the right thing?" 

Wendy gave Gajeel a look that suggested he might want to shut up if he didn't want to incur her wrath, and to no one's surprise, Gajeel complied. 

"How did the testing go?" 

Sting burst into loud fits of laughter, "You should've stayed Natsu, the look on that guy's face when Wendy fought him. She totally kicked his ass," He laughed some more. " I think they might still be removing his jaw from the floor." 

Natsu looked over at Wendy and saw her cheeks redden from Sting's words. He smiled proudly at her, before looking back at Gajeel. He raised an eyebrow in the Iron Dragon Slayer's direction. 

"They're both pretty good fighters." Gajeel added, "That Lyon guy gave Sting a good fight and if it hadn't been for my body being the way it is, I'd be hurting right now. Is lover boy ok?" 

Natsu glared at him, although he had to admit he didn't mind the suggestion that Gray was his. "I don't think he feels that way about me." 

"I don't know about that, Natsu. He seemed pretty disappointed when you left. Even Erza noticed." Wendy tried to reassure him. 

Of all the dragon slayers, she was the only one that knew what Gray was to him, and he gave her a hug to thank her for trying to cheer him up. 

"It doesn't matter, the fact remains we don't really know each other all that well," Natsu replied sadly. "We never did." 

He walked into his room, only to find his uncle waiting for him. 

"Giving up already?" Atlas raised his eyebrow in surprise, "That doesn't sound like you." 

"I'm not giving up. I just have to figure out a way to get him to change his mind about dragons, that's all." 

"You don't _have_ to tell him anything, Natsu." Atlas pointed out, "You could just court him as a human. He'd never have to know." 

"What if something were to happen and I changed?" Natsu argued as he fingered his scarf, "What do I do then? We don't know what's going to happen to me, we have nothing to compare against. I won't base this on a lie." 

"This is why I stayed single, it's too complicated," Atlas grumbled. 

"Here I thought it was because you couldn't get anyone to fall for your ugly mug." 

Atlas chuckled, smoke wisping out of his nostrils as he laughed, before becoming serious as he acknowledged his nephew's distress. "Natsu, I understand you feel frustrated. Even at a young age, you could already feel the connection. Have faith that it will work out. At least you don't have to subject yourself to a spell to be with your mate like your father did." 

"Did Mom know about Dad being a dragon?" Natsu had never felt comfortable talking to his father about his Mom, but for some reason he'd never thought of asking his uncle. 

"She did, he was afraid to undo the spell, so he brought her to the cave to meet me. And before you ask, yes, she was fully aware of what could happen when you were born. She didn't care, she wanted you, and she hoped for the best." 

"Can… Can you tell me more about her?" Natsu asked as he settled himself in his sleeping area. 

"I'll tell you what I remember, boy." 

Natsu listened as his uncle talked about his mother, cozying up to the warmth of borrowed memories. He hugged his scarf, inhaling his second favorite scent as he drifted off to sleep. 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 

Things with Gray had not improved much in the weeks following his arrival. Both ice mages had been hired by the guard. Natsu had heard from Erza that she’d helped Gray and Lyon find an apartment in the village. He tried not to let that bother him, it wasn't like he could've asked him to come live with him in his large, dragon-filled cave. 

He still had no clear understanding of who Lyon was to Gray and try as he might, he couldn't stop himself from feeling jealous of their apparent closeness. Especially when he and Gray could barely talk to one another at the moment. 

“Wendy?” Natsu yelled out as he walked towards the room she shared with Grandine, “Are you ready yet?” 

“Almost!” Wendy yelled. She had just finished bathing in the cave’s hot spring. 

“Hurry up, will ya?” Natsu grumbled impatiently. “Erza’s gonna pitch a fit if we’re late.” 

Wendy ran out of her room, tripping over a small loose rock, but Natsu quickly reached out to catch her. They were all used to it, she was going through a clumsy stage. 

"Thank you, Natsu-san." Wendy was so embarrassed to be in his arms that it made Natsu smile a little bit. He loved having the other slayers live with them. He set her back down, and they left the cave. 

They made their way down the mountain and towards the village, each busy with their own thoughts. They were supposed to relieve Sting and Lyon and take the next shift. As they neared the field, they heard a disconcerting roar. It was loud and clear and the creature it was coming from sounded terrified. Natsu and Wendy looked at each other in instant recognition and broke into a run. 

They were both shocked by the sight of Lyon, Sting, and Gray relentlessly attacking a baby red dragon with their magic. The ice had not been able to pierce the baby’s scales yet, his body temperature warm enough to melt the worst of it. Natsu noticed with growing rage that some of the baby’s scales were missing, it’s singed red skin showing underneath. He could hear Wendy’s sharp intake of breath behind him. 

"What the hell are you doing?" Natsu roared as he ran towards the injured baby dragon and stood in front of it. Wendy stood next to him, no less disturbed by the guards' actions. Natsu was furious, and without even a thought to what he was doing he immediately got into his fighting stance, ready to attack his friends if they didn’t back down. 

Sting, Lyon, and Gray looked at each other in confusion, none of them wanting to be the one to attack Natsu. 

“Get out of the way, Natsu,” Gray said calmly as he also maintained his attack stance. 

Natsu ignored him, baring his fangs at the three of them even as he made soothing noises for the young dragon in an attempt to calm him down. The dragon had started to whimper pitifully now that he and Wendy were protecting him. "Wendy, can you see what you can do about his injuries?" 

Wendy didn't reply, but she moved away from him, and he could hear her imitating his noises as she got closer to the dragon, already probing him with her healing magic. 

“He’s a dragon Natsu, he’s the enemy,” Gray said slowly, irritating Natsu further. 

“Sting, what the hell were you thinking? I expected this from the ice idiots, but you?” Natsu held Sting’s gaze, ignoring the angry glares that were coming from Gray and Lyon and focusing on staring the dragon slayer down. 

"Is this really what you think your magic is for? To slaughter innocents?" Sting was beginning to look uncomfortable, and Natsu was pretty sure he could count on his friend to stand down. 

Sting mumbled something under his breath and that was all Natsu needed to know he was correct. 

Natsu continued to glare at Gray and Lyon, neither of which had shown any indication of backing down. 

"You know, it sounds like no one has ever bothered to explain the war to you, so allow me to be the first. There are dragons out there who are fighting other dragons and putting their lives on the line to protect your ungrateful ass." Natsu all but screamed out. "The red dragons that you hate so much, they're on _your_ side, and this creature you're so keen on killing is not even old enough to breathe fire. He is _no_ threat to you. Baby dragons deserve our protection, there aren’t many being born anymore.” 

"He might be young now but it he’ll grow and go attack villages and kill people. I've seen it Natsu, you know that." Gray yelled back angrily. "If we kill him now, we'll be protecting countless people." 

“I’d hoped that you’d changed, but you didn’t learn a damn thing in those six years, did you?” Natsu glowered at his mate. “Dragons are just like people, Gray. Lyon is an asshole, but you don’t judge all other humans by him, do you?” 

“Hey!” Lyon protested, but aside from a snicker from Sting, no one paid him any attention. They were too intent on the fight that was developing in front of them. 

“You’re not a kid anymore Natsu, you need to get this idea out of your head that dragons are anything but beasts intent on destruction. For your own good.” Gray said in a voice that made his element seem warm in comparison. “Now get out of the way.” 

“I’m not going anywhere!” Natsu growled, “If you want to get to him, you’re going to have to go through me first.” Natsu tensed as he waited for Gray to attack. 

“I don’t want to hurt you, Natsu,” Gray warned. 

“Then don’t.” Natsu replied, “Just let him go.” 

“I can’t do that.” 

“Why won’t you listen to me?” Natsu yelled in frustration. He noticed that Lyon had backed away and was standing next to Sting, seemingly content to let the two of them hash it out. 

“Because you’re wrong,” Gray said calmly right before he attacked with an ice lance. 

Natsu ignored all the feelings that were flooding him and focused on countering Gray's attack. He raised his body temperature to quickly melt the oncoming lance and then ran at Gray, tackling him to the ground. 

Gray screamed in pain as the heat of Natsu’s skin burned him. Natsu quickly lowered his body temperature. He had no desire to actually hurt him. All he’d really wanted was for Gray to listen to him and consider what he’d said. They continued to wrestle, both getting as many punches and kicks in as they could. 

"What’s going on here?" Erza's roar washed over all of them, but Natsu and Gray continued their fight, "Natsu and Wendy, why haven't you reported for duty yet?" 

When she got no answer, she stomped over and grabbed Natsu by the collar of his vest allowing Gray to get a free shot in. Erza turned around and grabbed Gray by his hair since he was missing his shirt as usual. 

“One of you is going to explain to me what is going on, and the other will work all weekend.” Erza hissed, “Do I make myself clear?” 

Both boys tried to talk at the same time, and Erza knocked their heads together a little bit harder than she’d anticipated, instantly knocking both boys out. She let them go, and their bodies collapsed to the ground. She moved over to the other guards. 

“Well?” She raised an eyebrow at Lyon, who was busy staring at her as if he’d never seen her before. 

“We were going to kill that dragon when Natsu and Wendy tried to stop us,” Sting answered with his head hung low. “I’m sorry, Wendy.” 

Wendy looked up at Sting and tried to give him a smile, but she was still too shaken by everything that had just happened. Erza walked over to her to get a report. 

“What is going on with those two?” Sting asked Lyon, “I thought they were friends.” 

Lyon shook his head. “I have no idea, I wasn’t expecting them to escalate like that. Had I known, I would have tried to interfere.” 

Erza headed back their way, shouting orders before she was even close to them. “Sting, you’re to help Wendy with the dragon. She said she knows a good place to take it. Lyon, you are to wait for those two idiots to wake up and make sure they don’t start fighting again. Tell them they are both working all weekend.” 

Lyon nodded at her and walked over to find a comfortable place to sit while he waited for Natsu and Gray to come to. He watched over the two of them thoughtfully. 

Natsu was the first to wake up. He groaned as he rubbed his head, why did Erza have to whack them so hard? He sat up and watched Gray for a few seconds before realizing that they weren’t alone. He turned to see Lyon sitting nearby, everyone else was gone. 

“What happened to the dragon?” Natsu asked stiffly, he still didn’t like Lyon and today’s events had not helped his opinion of him. 

“Sting and Wendy took him somewhere safe.” Lyon told him, “Erza asked me to tell you that the two of you will be working all weekend.” 

Natsu took it in stride, it was no less than what he’d expected, although he wished Erza would learn to communicate less violently. 

“What happened back there?” Lyon asked, “Ever since I’ve known him, Gray always spoke of you as a friend.” 

Natsu looked back at Gray’s unconscious body and gave a resigned sigh. “It’s complicated. He _is_ my friend, my first friend.” 

Natsu thought back to when they had met, everything had been so simple at first. "When we were younger," Natsu recalled with a smile, "he rescued me from a tree, and we spent several great days together." 

He met Lyon's gaze and gave a small shrug, "It didn't end well, and I guess I'd just hoped that he'd changed." 

“Natsu, I’m not a threat,” Lyon said seriously. “Gray’s like my brother.” 

Natsu shrugged, “Why are you telling me that?” 

"Because I get the feeling you don't like me very much, and I would like for us to get along well enough to work together," Lyon responded. "In this type of work, you have to trust others to have your back. Frankly, there are plenty of better reasons to dislike me." 

Natsu sized up the boy in front of him and had to admit he was right. There _were_ plenty of better reasons to dislike him. He laughed in spite of himself, as he found himself counting them out in his head. “Ok. You’re right. For what it’s worth, I don’t think it matters anymore. This is something we will never agree on.” 

Lyon remained quiet for a while before saying "Give him time, Natsu. He's stubborn as hell, but I know he would hate to lose you." 

"I'm not going anywhere, I'm sure in time we'll be friends again." Natsu managed to sound more confident than he felt. Natsu was happy to see that Lyon wasn't as bad as he'd initially thought. He turned and began to amble towards the village, registering the aches from all the hits Gray had gotten on him. Natsu had to admit he was a pretty good fighter, neither of them had held back. Natsu knew he'd gotten in just as many hits. They’d been too angry to exercise any restraint. He stopped for a moment and looked back to the field with sadness and disappointment. He could feel Gray slipping further and further away from him. 

It was so cruel, Natsu had waited all this time to see his mate again, dreamed of the future they were supposed to share. He'd cherished their bond from the moment he'd discovered it, all those years ago. He'd foolishly put all his hopes into the idea that Gray would be the one to finally understand him, to take him out of his loneliness and make him feel like he ultimately belonged. 

Yet here they were, together again, and it hadn’t taken long at all for the dragon issue to blow up in their faces. He couldn't see a way around it, not when Gray was willing to kill an innocent creature just because it happened to be a dragon. For the first time, he considered the possibility that Gray might try to kill him if he ever found out what he was. For his own safety, he would need to distance himself from the person he loved the most. 

Natsu hoped Wendy and Sting were able to help the baby dragon. He hadn’t been exaggerating, there weren’t very many being born. Igneel complained about it all the time, the war was destroying their numbers in more ways than one. Sting was going to get an earful when Igneel returned and found out his part in the attack. Then again Natsu had his own earful to look forward to. He kept walking, dreading his impending chat with Erza. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: It’s kind of odd to do these so long after the chapter was written, the purpose of this chapter is to establish Gray’s baseline for his hatred of dragons. It is still very irrational and blinds him from seeing anything else. At this point Sting, Natsu, Rogue and Gray are 14, Lyon, Gajeel and Erza are 16, while Wendy is 12.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6 

Lyon kicked Gray when he started to stir. He was tired of waiting, he’d already run out of things he could realistically do to pass the time. 

“Ow, what the hell, Lyon?” Gray sat up rubbing the pain in his side. He looked around and saw that it was already getting dark. 

“Well, you definitely got your ass handed to you,” Lyon commented as he evaluated the bruises that covered what he could see of Gray’s body. “You should probably get Wendy to take a look at you. Then again, she might not be all that willing to help you.” He absently created some eagles out of his ice and practiced controlling them. 

“I was holding my own until the scarlet menace got involved.” 

“Is that what you think?” Lyon mused, intent on making his eagles fly in formation. “From where I was standing you lost the moment you overlooked what it was you wanted.” 

Gray seemed to be mulling over Lyon’s words but only managed to look confused. Lyon could only marvel at his denseness. 

“Why are we in this podunk village, Gray?” Lyon raised an eyebrow at his brother. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice and all, but we could have gone anywhere. You were determined to come here. Have you already forgotten why that was?” 

Lyon could almost work out the second Gray finally understood what he was getting at. “Natsu.” Gray groaned, putting his hand to his aching head and releasing some of his ice to try to soothe the pain. 

Lyon nodded affably. "Indeed, the hothead himself. So why is it then, that ever since we've been here, you've done nothing but antagonize him?" 

Gray startled at the unexpected question. “How should I know?” 

"Well, you better figure it out soon because I think you crossed a line today," Lyon said, and the seriousness in his voice made Gray take notice. 

“What do you mean?” 

“As much as it pains me to admit it, Natsu was right,” Lyon dispelled his eagles and turned his gaze towards his brother, “What we were about to do, it was a senseless slaughter. That dragon never attacked us, even after we attacked it. We went after it because of what it was, and I for one am ashamed of doing so.” 

“It was a dragon.” Gray snarled immediately. 

"It was an innocent creature, and if it ever does attack people, it will be our fault." Lyon corrected. "We just taught it to be afraid of people. I understand your hate, Gray, but maybe you need to work on limiting it to the dragon that deserves it. If you don't, you might lose the one person you were so determined to find." 

“Why does he care so much about them?” Gray shouted in frustration. 

“I don’t know, but it’s obvious that he does.” Lyon answered, already becoming disinterested. 

Gray eyed Lyon with suspicion, “Why do you care about this so much all of a sudden?” 

Lyon shrugged, “I can respect someone who stands up for what they believe in, especially when it so obviously goes against what they want.” 

He chose not to mention the expression he’d seen on Natsu’s face when he’d looked at Gray. It might very well already be too late for Gray to make amends. Lyon had done the best he could, the rest was up to them. 

“By the way, the scarlet menace, as you so charmingly call her, asked me to tell you that you’re working all weekend,” Lyon informed his brother, freezing the smile that wanted to creep in as he thought of Erza. He was kind of glad they had ended up in this village, not that he would ever admit it. 

Gray whined, “I just got off working for the last three days.” 

“You should have thought of that before you attacked a fellow guardsman,” Lyon remarked with zero sympathy. “He’s stuck working the weekend as well, by the way.” 

His task completed, Lyon headed home, leaving a disgruntled Gray to hopefully think about what he'd said. Then again, even if he didn't, there would be plenty of fireworks to keep Lyon entertained. 

O-o 

"Of all the stupid, immature stunts you’ve ever pulled." Erza continued to yell, and Natsu debated tuning her out, but he knew from experience it would only serve to irritate her further. So he sat in his chair and listened to Erza unload her displeasure until she was done. This day was going splendidly so far. 

To his surprise, Erza got up from behind her desk and examined his bruises, which were already healing thanks to the regenerative ability that was part of his magic. He could occasionally extend this ability to others as well, although it took a lot out of him to do so. 

"Are you okay?" Erza asked him, and when he heard the concern in her words, it warmed his aching heart a little. 

Natsu plastered his usual smile on his face, “This? This is nothing.” 

“Don’t do that.” Erza snapped. 

“What?” Natsu asked, genuinely confused. 

“Act as if nothing happened,” Erza met his gaze and held it. “I’ve never seen you fight like that, Natsu. Not against a friend, anyway. What happened?” 

“I couldn’t let Gray kill that dragon, and he was determined to.” 

“Do you know what that’s about?” Natsu could tell that Erza was trying to figure out how much of an issue she had on her hands, but he didn’t hold it against her. There was real concern mixed in as well. He knew better than anyone that her job wasn’t easy. He’d had it before her, and he still filled in for her when she went away on missions. 

"Yeah," He closed his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath before opening them. His green eyes fixed on Erza's waiting brown ones. "Before we met, his village was attacked by the red dragon Deliora. The village was destroyed, and everyone but Gray was killed. He watched the whole thing happen." 

The most frustrating part of the whole situation was that Natsu could somewhat understand. He didn't know how he would feel if everyone he loved was taken away from him. 

Erza gasped, she'd heard of such things happening, but she'd never met anyone that had been directly affected. It indeed explained the animosity. Her mother had been fighting in the war for years, trying to keep Talos safe from those types of attacks. She’d been the first adult to receive magic from the dragon slayer spell. After some training, she’d left with her dragon, Belserion, to join the battle effort. Even now, she was still fighting. It had been a long time since Erza had seen her, but she was proud of her mother. It's why she enjoyed her job so much, it made her feel like she was doing her part to keep them safe too. 

Still, the village of Talos had a peaceful relationship with the red dragons that lived in the mountains. Erza had no desire to put that in jeopardy, just because Gray couldn’t control his emotions. Although the red dragons mostly kept to themselves, they could occasionally be spotted flying around the mountains or even over the lake. Erza was sure they were responsible for keeping most of the more dangerous dragons away. 

"Natsu, I've been meaning to ask you," Erza asked sweetly, which in all honesty should have been the first clue he was about to get screwed. "How is it the two of you know each other?" 

“When I was eight years old I got lost and he...rescued me, I guess. We traveled together for a few days. Then… my uncle found me and brought me home.” Natsu hedged, glossing over most of the details. “I never saw him again until he showed up here with Lyon.” 

Erza looked at him for several minutes, “How did he know about your magic? You didn’t get yours until right before the others.” 

Natsu couldn’t believe he’d forgotten about that. _Shit!_ He remained outwardly calm and shrugged his shoulders, feigning ignorance. This was a problem. 

Erza narrowed her eyes at him and was about to say something when there was a knock on her office door. 

“What is it?” Erza called out in a tone that implied whoever was on the other side better have one hell of a good excuse for interrupting. 

The response was muffled but still easy to make out. “It’s Gray.” 

Erza walked over to the door and pulled it open, she pointed to the chair next to Natsu's, and Gray hurried to sit. 

o-o 

Gray snuck a look at Natsu and to his chagrin saw the fire mage looked to be in much better shape than he was. He noticed how Natsu's jaw had locked into a hard line the moment he'd walked in the room. Gray remembered Lyon's words -- _you might lose the one person that you were so determined to find._ He didn’t want that to happen. 

He heard Erza cough and shifted his attention to her. 

“Now that I have you both here, I would like to express my displeasure with your actions.” Erza continued in this vein, droning on and on until Gray could barely keep his eyes open. 

He was startled by Erza kicking his chair. “If something like this happens again, you will both be expelled from the guard. Do you understand?” 

“What?!” Natsu complained as he shot out of his chair, “He attacked _me_ , how is that fair?” 

“You didn’t have to continue it Natsu, you could have incapacitated him at any moment.” Erza pointed out. “You chose to keep fighting.” 

“Furthermore, Gray is here because of you, so he will be _your_ responsibility.” Erza said with a smile that clearly invited no opposition, “Consider yourselves a team from now on.” 

That did not stop Natsu from continuing to express his displeasure, making it more than obvious that he wanted nothing to do with Gray. 

"Enough!" Erza yelled, "I’ve made my decision, you either team up with Gray, or you can leave the guard now." 

Gray could see Natsu was fighting for control of his temper. How had things gotten so bad between them so quickly? Two weeks in and they were right back where they had left things off, six years earlier. Even though he still felt he'd made the right decision in regards to the dragon, Gray felt terrible for how he'd behaved towards Natsu. He shouldn't have attacked him. 

"I'm sorry." Gray blurted out, surprising both Natsu and Erza with his outburst. "I shouldn't have attacked you." He tried to explain further, but it didn't seem Natsu and Erza were listening. They were staring at each other, engaged in some kind of nonverbal conversation he was not privy to. 

Finally, Natsu sighed and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Fine.” 

“Are we done?” Natsu asked gruffly. 

Erza nodded, and Natsu motioned for Gray to follow him. They were almost out the door when Erza stopped them. 

"By the way, Gray, Natsu and I were curious about how you knew of his magic." Erza watched his face intently, and Gray quickly darted his eyes to Natsu, confused by the question. What he saw was even more confusing, Natsu shook his head almost imperceptibly. 

“Oh, uhm I heard someone talking about it on our way into the village. I thought Natsu would be annoyed that I already knew.” Gray lied, pretty badly too, but Erza seemed satisfied. He assumed she wanted to be rid of them. 

They left the room, and Natsu walked off hurriedly. 

“Hey, where are you going?” Gray hurried after him. “What was that about?” 

"I'm going to the changing rooms, I need to get into my uniform." Natsu gestured towards his clothes which had been considerably soiled during their fight. Gray noticed that his bruises were even fainter than before. How was that possible? Had he already seen a healer? His own body was covered in purple bruises and dried blood, and it hurt to move around, but Natsu did not seem bothered at all. 

Natsu gave him a once over and winced at his bruises. “You should probably do the same, Erza will have a fit if she finds out you did patrol looking like that. When did you lose your shirt?” 

Gray looked down at himself and noticed his missing shirt for the first time. “Ugh...How does that keep happening?“ Gray looked somewhere between annoyed and frustrated at finding that he had once again walked around the village shirtless. He didn’t like the type of attention it got him. Stares from the girls and women, and even some of the men. 

Natsu laughed at the frustrated expression on Gray’s face. 

They arrived at the changing rooms, and Natsu opened the door and went inside, letting go of the door behind him so that Gray had to put his arm out to keep from getting hit in the face. 

"Idiot!" Gray muttered, annoyed by Natsu's thoughtlessness. He entered the room and closed the door behind him, weaving around the long benches to get to where his guard gear was kept. 

“Erza is very...intense,” Gray commented as he took off his pants and grabbed a replacement pair, putting the dirty ones in the shared hamper. 

Natsu groaned in agreement, “You don’t even know the half of it yet, she’s been holding back to make you guys feel comfortable.” 

“That’s holding back?” Gray asked, perplexed that what he had witnessed was considered restraint. He put the clean pants on and reached for a shirt, hoping that he managed to keep this one on. 

Natsu chuckled as he nodded, "Yeah, no weapons were drawn, and she didn't change into one of her armors." He removed his clothes and got out a clean uniform 

Gray wasn’t sure if Natsu was messing with him or not, but thinking about what he’d seen so far, the idea didn’t seem so far fetched. “Why do you guys put up with that?” 

"Erza might be a bit overzealous, but she's really good at her job, and Talos is better because of it." Natsu was openly staring at Gray’s chest with a frown, Unlike the stares, he got from strangers Gray couldn't say he minded. The dragon slayer moved closer to him and reached out with his hand to touch Gray's chest. 

“May I?” Natsu looked at Gray, waiting for his approval. 

“What - what are you doing?” Gray waffled, not knowing how to respond to the strange request. 

"Your injuries, I feel responsible. You should probably be seen by Wendy, but if you wait too much longer, you'll probably scar." Natsu was acting somewhat unsurely, and it was confusing. Gray continued to stare at him. 

“Feel responsible?” Gray snapped, “You _are_ responsible.” 

Natsu tensed up at his words but did not rise to the bait. “Do you want me to heal you or not?” 

“You can heal?” Gray glanced at him in wonder, “Uhm, yeah. Sure.” 

"Not as good as Wendy, but I can do some, it just takes a lot out of me." Natsu closed his eyes, and after a few seconds, his hands began to glow as small red seals materialized at his fingertips. He opened his eyes, and Gray could see that they were also glowing, making them look as bright as emeralds. 

Natsu brought his hands closer to Gray’s chest without actually touching it, and Gray felt soothing warmth wherever Natsu directed his magic. It made him feel a pure sort of happiness, reminding him of the nights he’d spent snuggled with Natsu inside his bedroll. This feeling was why he’d wanted to find Natsu again, he’d never felt it with anyone else. 

Gray closed his eyes, wanting to enjoy the sensation without the complication of where it was coming from. He felt the warmth move up to his face. He could feel his split lip putting itself back together and the swelling in his eye going down until it disappeared. There was no pain, just gentle warmth. He felt a sense of loss when the heat dissipated. He opened his eyes to find Natsu gasping for breath and looking dizzy. 

“You dumbass, you did too much!” Gray grabbed his friend and maneuvered him toward one of the long benches. He laid Natsu down and fretted over him as he waited for him to recover. Thinking of the fact that Natsu used his magic to heal him reminded Gray of the lie he’d told earlier. 

“Natsu, how come Erza doesn’t know you’ve always had magic?” Gray hadn’t been able to come up with a suitable explanation. Natsu had known these people for years, it didn’t make sense. Was it somehow because of him and what had happened when they were children? 

Natsu didn’t say anything, just kept trying to get his breathing under control as Gray watched him. 

“Can you get me some water?” Natsu heaved out, still looking a bit worse for wear. 

Gray ran to the kitchen to ask for some water. One of the benefits of being a guardsman was that the kitchens were well stocked, and there was always someone around to cater to their needs. He turned a corridor and noticed a woman staring at his chest. He looked down to see that not only was his shirt still unbuttoned but all of his considerable bruises were gone. It appeared Natsu had healed him completely. 

By the time he returned with the water, Natsu seemed to have recovered, although he still looked a bit haggard. He was waiting for Gray so they could start their patrol. They left the changing room, each feeling a bit better about the other but still uncertain as everything was left unresolved. 

O-o 

When Natsu returned to his cave on Monday evening, he was greeted by the sight of Sting cowering in a corner while both Igneel and Weisslogia were expressing their displeasure at his actions. Natsu hadn’t realized they were due to return so soon. 

"How many times do I have to say I'm sorry?" Sting whined at the two giant dragons. 

“It doesn’t matter how many times you say you’re sorry, Sting, it doesn’t take away the fear or pain that poor hatchling endured due to your actions." Weisslogia roared, his anger creating an aura of bright light around him. "You attacked and injured a defenseless creature, and for that, you will submit to whatever punishment Igneel deems fit." 

Sting looked miserable, but it was clear he accepted his fate. Natsu wasn't too concerned. His father was fair most of the time, he would come up with a suitable punishment, and then the whole incident would be over. He walked past everyone without saying a word and headed straight for his room. 

He was exhausted. He'd worked for three days straight, with very little sleep, and while trying to maintain himself emotionally distant from Gray. He settled himself into his sleeping area, looking forward to sleeping for as many hours as he could get away with, but luck was not on his side. Heavy footsteps were headed his way. He recognized one as his father's, and he was not alone. Another dragon seemed to be with him. 

“Natsu, we need to talk to you,” Natsu groaned as soon as he heard his father’s voice. He sounded serious, and Natsu knew he wouldn’t be sleeping anytime soon. He sat up to find his father and uncle already in his room. 

Natsu felt a knot tighten in his stomach as soon as he saw the expressions on their faces. Whatever this was, he wasn’t going to like it. 

"I wish I had better news, but all of us are going to have to leave tomorrow." Atlas and Igneel looked at each other, and Natsu knew they were trying to figure out how much to tell him. 

"You'll need to remain in charge while we're gone." Igneel told him "I can see you're tired, but I must ask you to go with Atlas tonight so he can show you how to do night patrols. You'll need to take over that duty while we're gone. It's important you keep them up. They dissuade some of the more dangerous dragons from setting their sights on the village." 

“Please be careful while we’re gone.” Natsu had never seen his father look this defeated before. “Don’t let the others see you transform, especially not with Gray around.” 

“Dad, what’s going on?” 

“There’s a complication with the dragon slayers that we didn’t anticipate. Some of them have turned against us.” 

“What?!” Natsu was now fully awake. 

“They’ve started killing all dragons, regardless of what side they’re on.” Atlas roared in disgust, “They use our blood to make themselves stronger.” 

Natsu was too shocked to say anything, all he could do was dart his eyes towards the central room of the cave where Sting had been just a few minutes earlier. 

“Our dragon slayers will be fine, Natsu,” Igneel assured him, “It’s not a disease, it’s probably more a result of not picking the recipient wisely. Still, these renegade dragon slayers are hiding amongst the others and need to be dealt with. Irene has already identified several.” 

"The six of us are just going to go reinforce the ranks, we'll be back before you know it. I used to be a pretty good fighter a few hundred years ago," Igneel smiled, but Natsu didn't feel reassured in the slightest. Everything seemed to be going wrong at once. 

Atlas and Igneel had never gone off to fight at the same time, it had been an unspoken rule since he was young. One of them always stayed with him. That brought home, just how desperate the situation was. “I’ll go with you, I’ll help fight.” 

“Absolutely not.” Igneel rumbled, “I’ve already told you, I need you to stay here and take care of the village. I need you to do this in my stead, Natsu.” 

Natsu wanted to argue, to convince his father that it was better if he stayed by his side, but he knew there was no point. His father was right. Although he’d never given much thought to his role as the next leader of the red dragons, it was his duty. His father had always handled everything, but it was time for him to step up and who knew, maybe it was just what he needed to get his mind off of Gray and the whole mate business. 

“Alright, I will do what you ask of me.” Natsu bowed his head slightly and then went over to his father’s face and nuzzled it with his own. “I hope I can make you proud.” 

“Natsu, I’ve always been proud of you.” Igneel lowered his head, making it easier for Natsu to hug him. “I heard about what happened with Gray. It took a lot of courage to go against your instincts.” 

“It was the right thing to do, I couldn’t let him hurt the hatchling.” 

“That is exactly why I know I don’t have to worry about you while I’m gone.” Igneel’s eyes shone as he purred at his son. 

“His hate is so much worse than I remembered,” Natsu said, the whole thing felt hopeless to him. 

“He’s still young, as are you.” Igneel reminded him. “Don’t give up on him, he’s here because of you. Get to know him again, you don’t know what’s gone on in his life since you were separated.” 

“That’s true,” Natsu said slowly. Gray _had_ come to Talos because of a desire to see him again. It wasn’t much to hold on to, but at least it was something. 

Atlas interrupted his train of thought. “Are you ready to go? We have a lot to cover.” 

Natsu nodded. He was a bit nervous, he hoped he was able to transform without a problem. It had been a while since the last time. 

“Good luck, Natsu.” Igneel bid him farewell, promising to stay in his room that evening. 

Natsu followed Atlas to the rear exit of their cave. When they were far enough away from the others, he transformed into his dragon form, relieved that he had no trouble. He stretched out his wings and swished his long tail. It had always felt strange to him that this was also a part of who he was, but as he got older, he’d grown to accept it more and more. 

“You need some practice flying before we get going?” Atlas looked him over. 

“Nah, that’s always been my favorite part. Catch me if you can!” Natsu felt his snout spread into a mischievous grin as he took off in the air. 

He could hear Atlas’ booming laugh behind him as they both flew up towards the clouds, needing the invisibility they provided to hide his uncle’s hellfire from any prying eyes. They raced for a few minutes. Natsu loved the feeling of freedom that flying gave him. He roared in happiness and let out his breath attack, content in the moment. 

“Alright, that’s enough play. Let’s get started before you burn down something.” 

For the next several hours, Natsu listened as his uncle walked him through what his new task would entail until they returned to their cave. Natsu changed back to his human form and hurried to his room to spend some time with his father. He didn’t go to sleep until it was very late. When he woke up the next morning, the dragons were already gone. 


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7  
  
Natsu lay on the grass of his favorite field with his arms behind his head, basking in the sun and staring up at the clouds thoughtfully. He wondered how his father and the others were faring. Atlas had told him the war had moved closer, it was only a few days flight away. He had been the one Natsu had always relied on for the hard truths. His father still liked to protect him.  
  
Natsu was full of worry. It had been six months since they’d left and the fear that one of the renegade dragon slayers would come after his father was something he couldn’t shake. He could only hope that Atlas kept his promise and stayed by his father's side.  
  
He was also exhausted. He couldn't precisely tell Erza that he was pulling double duty. Working as a guard during the day and then having to change into his dragon form to go on patrol at night was already beginning to wear on him.  
  
He was finding it harder and harder to get away at night, the other dragon slayers were just as concerned about their adoptive parents as he was about Igneel and Atlas. They were clingier and had begun to all sleep in a big pile in the center room of the cave, which felt colder since Igneel and Atlas had left. A few times, he thought he’d caught Gajeel staring after him when he sneaked away, but the Iron Dragon Slayer hadn’t said anything.  
  
"I don't know why I look anywhere else for you, you're always here."  
  
Natsu opened his eyes slowly to see Gray sitting next to him, a blade of grass sticking out of his mouth. He gave himself a moment to look at the well-loved features before he closed himself off again.  
  
"What's the matter with you, Flame Brain?" Gray looked him over with interest, "You've been looking like hell lately."  
  
"Another fire nickname, how original." Natsu rolled his eyes, "I was hoping you'd be over that by now." He looked at the position of the sun in the sky. "Crap, how did it get so late?"  
  
"You fell asleep, genius." Gray watched as Natsu scrambled to get up.  
  
"Relax, you still have time, not to mention, Erza's away on a mission today."  
  
"That's worse, that means I'm in charge for the day."  
  
Gray started snickering, "Erza actually trusts you to be in charge?"  
  
"Believe it or not, I had the job before her."  
  
Gray looked at him intently and burst into peals of laughter. "You're right, I don't believe it."  
  
Natsu laughed along in spite of himself. He wanted to be insulted, but the idea that someone would entrust him with something that important _was_ pretty funny. Except, Igneel had done just that. He stopped laughing and worried again.  
  
"You never answered my question." Gray was looking at his face again, and Natsu felt uncomfortable.  
  
"Igneel and Atlas left to go fight in the war a few months ago." Natsu confided, why not, he and Lyon were probably the only ones that didn't already know.  
  
"Oh. I'm sorry." Gray looked down at the grass and replaced the blade in his mouth. "You must be worried. Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
Natsu was surprised to see that Gray looked hurt. "I guess I don't like to think about it, although it seems to be all I do."  
  
"Natsu, are we friends?" Gray looked at him with a seriousness he wasn't expecting.  
  
"What? Of course, we are, idiot." Natsu punched Gray non too gently in the shoulder in what passed for affection between them at this point. He managed to knock him down on the grass.  
  
Gray bounced back quickly and punched him just as hard, both boys laughing as they started one of their wrestling matches. They rolled around in the grass trying to get the upper hand on the other. It had become a routine of sorts whenever they were in the field, no magic was ever used. They saved that for their training spars. Natsu let Gray win this time, pretending to look annoyed, while inwardly reveling at the happy grin on Gray's face. It was the closest to affection he was going to get. Besides he would get him back at training where the rules were more clear.  
  
Gray got up and offered him a hand, and Natsu let himself be pulled up. "Come on Acting Captain of the Guard, you don't want to be late."  
  
Natsu snorted at that, and they started the long walk back to the village. Natsu remembered what his father had said about getting to know Gray again and decided to give it a try. He cleared his throat and asked, "What happened to you after I left?"  
  
Gray stopped in his tracks and stared at Natsu, his eyes big as saucers and just as vulnerable. "You mean after I attacked you?"  
  
"I thought we were past that." Natsu reminded him.  
  
"Yeah, but I still feel bad about doing that." Gray muttered, "Both times."  
  
"I already forgave you, Gray. I healed you didn't I?" Natsu pointed out.  
  
"Yeah, you did." Gray agreed, "That reminds me, how come no one here knew you had magic until recently?"  
  
"How is it all questions about you, end up turning back to me?"  
  
"Sorry. I just want to know why I lied to Erza."  
  
"Don't you mean the Scarlet Menace?" Natsu grinned at his friend.  
  
Gray stopped, taken aback. "How do you know about that?"  
  
Natsu laughed, "Lyon has a big mouth, not to mention an enormous crush on Erza."  
  
"He didn't tell her, did he?" Gray looked both horrified and ready to kill. "What else did he say?" This time he definitely looked nervous.  
  
"Nothing, he's been asking us a lot of stuff about her. Why, do you have other nicknames for her?"  
  
"Anyway," Gray quickly changed the topic, "You were about to tell me about your magic."  
  
"You don't let up, do you?" Natsu asked him and then shrugged, "After what happened with you, my dad thought it best to keep it a secret from the others. It was one of the conditions he had for me attending school in the village. Once the whole dragon slayer thing happened, it was awkward to admit I'd always had it."  
  
"You can stop feeling guilty, it's fine," Natsu assured Gray, trying to ease away the frown from the other's face. "It was a long time ago. We were little, and you were upset."  
  
Gray started to speak, but Natsu interrupted, "I don't want to hear any more about it. Now, your turn."  
  
"I waited for you to come back, I knew I'd never be able to find you if you didn't want me to. When you didn't return, I did the only thing I could, I kept heading towards that village. It took me a few days, but I found it."  
  
"Once I got there I had no idea what to do, I spent most of the day just watching. I went to a bakery, determined to ask for food in exchange for work, but the woman was so mean to me I froze. She was coming to hit me with a broom when this woman named Ur came out of nowhere and told her off." Gray smiled as he remembered the first time he had seen Ur.  
  
"Lyon came and talked to me, he’d been alone too until Ur found him. They took me home with them, and we became a family of sorts."  
  
"She was the one who taught me magic. She was amazing, although her training methods were a bit strange at first." Gray laughed, his eyes shining in a way that enthralled Natsu, "She's also the one that gave me that stupid stripping habit."  
  
The laughter was soon replaced with a broken smile, "I was happy there, but she got sick and died." Gray looked at Natsu seriously, "I talked Lyon into coming here. You were the only other person I knew, and I was hoping you were still here."  
  
Natsu was saved from having to respond by an annoyed Gajeel, "What the hell took you so long, Salamander? Did you fall asleep in the field again?"  
  
Natsu didn't answer right away, and Gajeel frowned. "Maybe you should sleep with the rest of us instead of running off to wherever you go to at night."  
  
Natsu stiffened at Gajeel's words. He'd been right, Gajeel had been watching him. _Shit!_ He was going to have to be even more careful. He could feel Gray's eyes on him, but he didn’t meet them.  
  
"I'm here now, you can go." He put some command into his voice, to let Gajeel know not to push him. Gajeel glared at him but left.  
  
Gray started to say something but Natsu cut him off. "You can start patrol without me. I have to go to Erza's office to read her orders. I'll catch up with you later."  
  
He walked off towards Erza's office and ignored the eyes he felt following him. He opened the door and sat at his old desk, looking through the papers to see what required his attention. Damn Gajeel, and damn Erza too. He groaned when he saw the long list of things she had left for him to do. It kept him occupied well into the night.  
  
He reached the cave to find all the other dragon slayers already sleeping, save for Gajeel, who had apparently been waiting up for him. He gestured for Natsu to follow him into the room he shared with Metalicana.  
  
"What is it you're doing at night?" Gajeel demanded, never being one to mince words, "Whatever it is, let me help you. I can do more than just babysit the others."  
  
"I'm sorry, but you can't help," Natsu told him honestly. "I was given instructions by Atlas, but it's something only I can do. If you want to help, you can keep the others off me so I can go do it."  
  
"I'm going to find out eventually." Gajeel prodded, "You might as well just tell me."  
  
"I can't, Igneel forbade it. I really need you to respect that." Natsu pleaded with Gajeel.  
  
"Since when do you do what you're told?"  
  
"Since the one telling me was a humongous cranky fire dragon," Natsu smirked.  
  
Gajeel snorted at that, "Okay, I can't argue with that."  
  
"Just, don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it," Gajeel told him before heading towards the entrance of the room, leaving Natsu in a state of confusion. Gajeel was being nice? He never expected Gajeel to offer his help, but he still couldn't take it.  
  
When Gajeel had reached the entrance, he stopped and turned. "One last thing, Salamander. I know that Gray guy is important to you, but if he pulls something like what he did to that baby dragon again, I won't hold back." Natsu could feel Gajeel's glare pierce through him.  
  
Natsu nodded in understanding and then stared at Gajeel's retreating back thoughtfully. Great. One more thing to worry about. Just what he needed after the day he'd already had. He left Gajeel's room and eyed his own with something akin to longing, but he still had his patrol to do. He headed towards the back exit making sure he wasn’t followed and after transforming flew out into the night.  
  



	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8 

It had been an unusually long day. Erza had them run drills for hours, switching up partners every round. He'd been holding his own until he'd been paired with Rogue. He usually didn't have that much trouble fighting the Shadow Dragon Slayer, but he was just too tired to be able to maintain the speed needed to stay one step ahead of the shadows that tried to suffocate him. 

He'd hoped that Erza would take notice, but instead she had given him Gajeel as his next partner. She kept her eyes on him the whole time, evaluating him as she always did. She barked adjustments that he couldn't make in time. Paying attention to her meant he wasn't paying attention to Gajeel, and that was a big mistake. 

He woke up in the infirmary with Gray sitting in a chair by his bedside. He was staring at him, concerned with a side of sadness. 

"Why won't you let us help you, Natsu?" Gray asked, and although he tried to hide it, Natsu could tell that Gray was just about at his limit of how many of Natsu's excuses he was willing to listen to. 

"What could possibly be so important that you have to do this to yourself?" Gray caught his gaze and refused to let go. Natsu felt trapped in those eyes, and he was frustrated that they demanded answers he just couldn't give. Not yet. 

“It’s a task only--” He got no further. 

"Yeah yeah, a task only you can do. I know. You've said." Gray sounded annoyed as he waved the excuse away. "What is this task, Natsu?" 

Natsu set his lips in a hard line, having to yet again fight the instincts that demanded he keep no secrets from his mate. He felt a trace of anger and quickly subdued it. If only Gray were not so unreasonable about dragons, he could tell him everything, instead of continually having to hide what he was and how he felt. 

"I'm fine now, that must have been a good nap," Natsu gave his friend his best grin. He noticed with some confusion that Gray was staring at his mouth a little too intently, a frown marring his features. What was that about? Natsu closed his mouth. 

Gray shook his head and laughed before starting in on him again. "Nap? Natsu, Gajeel knocked you out with one punch." 

"What?! No way that metal freak took me down in one punch." Natsu yelled in outrage and quickly sat up. He pressed his hand to his head as his yelling introduced him to a headache that had been shyly hiding until then. He groaned and fell back on the bed. 

“I swear, I can’t tell whether it’s the hit you got to the head or if you’re just really this stupid.” Gray rolled his eyes as he chuckled. 

Natsu shook his fist at him, but it didn't really have the intended effect. Gray only looked concerned again. 

Gray muttered something under his breath that Natsu purposefully ignored. He at least had the decency to feel bad that he was making his friend worry about him. 

“Don’t look so worried, Ice Block, I’ll be fine in no time.” Natsu tried to reassure Gray to no avail. 

"I don't know if you've noticed this, but your regeneration is not working as well as it used to." The glare on Gray's face softened. He placed his hand on Natsu's cheek, "I care about you, Natsu. Please let me help you." 

Natsu felt his heart begin to race at those words. That was the closest Gray had ever come to admitting that he had feelings for him. It was what Natsu had always wanted, but dammit now was not the right time. 

There was a sharp knock on the infirmary door, and Rogue entered. "Gray, Erza wants to see you in her office." 

“I don’t want to leave Natsu.” Gray dismissed the dragon slayer without even a glance. 

"She said you might feel that way and to tell you it wasn't really a suggestion." Rogue shrugged, stoically facing Gray's displeasure with a look that said, Don't look at me, I'm just the messenger. 

“Erza gave Natsu the rest of the day off, Sting and I will get him home. I’m sure Wendy can do better than the guard healer.” 

Gray got up reluctantly, knowing full well it wasn’t wise to defy Erza. “We’re not done talking about this, Natsu.” He warned before leaving the infirmary. 

Rogue looked at Natsu with something akin to interest. "What was that about?" 

Natsu got up from the infirmary bed slowly, “He wants to know what I’ve been doing at night.” 

"He's not the only one," Rogue took in how beat up his friend looked and frowned. "We're worried too." 

“As I already told the Ice Block, I’ll be fine,” Natsu said as he yawned tiredly, he really did need to get some sleep. He was grateful Erza had given him the afternoon off, even though he knew it would more than likely come with a price. 

O-o 

“Couldn’t this have waited, Erza?” Gray griped as he entered the Captain of the Guard’s office. “I was about to get Natsu to tell me what he’s been up to.” 

"I highly doubt that." Erza viewed the angry expression on Gray's face with amusement. "He's stubborn as a mule and clearly doesn't want us to know what he's up to." 

"I, for one, am done waiting. If Natsu doesn't tell us, then we'll have to take matters into our own hands." Erza got up from behind her desk and walked around it, choosing to sit on one of the chairs in her office. She motioned Gray to sit across from her. 

Gray sat impatiently, wanting to get back to the infirmary before Natsu left. “What is it you think he’s doing?” 

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I think he’s doing anything wrong,” Erza assured him. “But we both know that Natsu is reckless.” 

Gray nodded in agreement. Natsu could be amazingly reckless, especially when it came to protecting those around him. He'd already taken several hits for Gray in their time together as partners. 

“It’s not a well-known fact, but our mountains are inhabited by red dragons.” She paused when she saw Gray stiffen. 

When he didn’t immediately comment, she continued. “I am sharing this information with you because I’m concerned, so if I hear that you went off to do something stupid, you _will_ regret it.” 

“If a dragon doesn’t kill you, I will make you wish he had.” Erza glared daggers at Gray until she felt sure he understood the enormity of what would befall him if he acted outside of her orders. 

“You and Lyon aren’t from here so you might not realize this, but Talos has not had a single dragon attack in the last sixteen years. I’ve always thought that strange. Villages all around us have been targeted, but never us.” 

She gave him some time to think about that before she told him what she’d been getting at. “I believe the red dragons have protected us over the years.” 

Gray began to protest, but Erza cut him off, "Shut up and listen, Gray." 

"Natsu's fire dragon magic came from a red dragon, a rather powerful one by the name of Atlas from what I understand. Now I can't be sure, but I think that whatever this Atlas was doing to keep the village safe, he made Natsu responsible for it in his absence. That must be the task he was given." Erza clenched her fists. "It's the only thing that makes sense." 

“I think he’s trying to go after dragons on his own, getting to them before they can be a threat to us.” Erza watched closely for Gray’s reaction. 

"No! I refuse to believe that." Gray roared, "Not even _he's_ that reckless." 

Could it be true? Could Natsu really be going out at night on his own battling dragons? He found he was having trouble breathing at the thought of Natsu fighting a dragon the size of Deliora on his own. There was no way. He didn't care if Natsu was a dragon slayer. There was no way a single human could fight against something like that and come out on top, especially with no injuries to show for it. For the first time, he thought about the possibility that one day Natsu might not be there and it shook him. His need to get to the infirmary grew even more, he had to shake some sense into that idiot. 

She noticed the change in Gray’s expression but wasn’t sure how to interpret it. “What’s the matter?” 

“I’d just never given any thought to the fact that Natsu had a dragon. I mean I get he’s a dragon slayer but-- Is that why all the dragon slayers live in a cave?” 

"Natsu has always lived in a cave." Erza looked at him with surprise. "You know, Gray, for such a close friend, you seem to know very little about him." 

“We don’t discuss our childhoods much,” Gray admitted, “There are some things there we’d rather forget.” 

Erza nodded with understanding. 

"They all got their magic about three years ago, as did my mother." Erza recounted, "The spell was created by Natsu's dragon. They all moved in there so that he could make sure that there were no problems, then they sort of came together as a family. It's why they're so close." 

Gray sputtered, “A family? With dragons?” 

“Yes, Gray. You’re going to need to open your mind a bit.” 

“Talos is our village, and it is our responsibility to protect it any way we can,” Erza said heatedly. 

“Even if Natsu is considered the strongest of our dragon slayers, he’s still not a dragon. He can’t keep doing this by himself. Eventually, he _will_ get hurt. If we can find out exactly what he's doing, we can help him. Whether he wants it or not." 

"That's why I called you here," Erza said, finally getting to the point. "I want you to follow him and find out what he's doing." Erza gave the order sternly, before softening her voice, "Then we can keep him safe." 

Gajeel walked away from Erza's office as quietly as he could. It seemed as though Erza's thinking was in line with his. He couldn't have Gray following Natsu though. He had a feeling that would be more trouble than it was worth. He'd just have to make sure he never got the chance. 

Natsu might not want help, but this at least was something Gajeel could do. 

O-o 

Sting and Rogue half carried half dragged Natsu all the way up to the cave. They placed him gently on the floor of the main room, and he fell into a deep sleep the moment his head touched the ground. He woke up more refreshed than he had in a long time. Wendy must have healed him while he slept because he couldn't feel any pain. He opened his eyes to find four pairs of eyes scrutinizing him with varying degrees of worry. 

Natsu groaned, not again. 

"How are you feeling?" Wendy asked, her voice barely registering above a whisper in the deep cave. "Does it hurt anywhere?" 

"No, I feel great." Natsu smiled at the younger girl and sat up. "You did a great job, Wendy. Thank you!" 

Wendy smiled happily at his praise and sat down next to him. 

“Alright, get it over with, say what you gotta say.” Natsu watched as the others tried to figure out who was going to be the first one to speak. 

"Look, we know that Igneel and Atlas left you instructions," Sting began, "and that you're working very hard not to let them down." 

"But you can't keep on like this." Rogue interrupted Sting. "Let us help you. We're dragon slayers too, we're not useless." 

"Black and White over there are right, Salamander." Gajeel scowled. "At this rate, you're bound to get hurt. Don't get the wrong idea, it's not that I'm worried about you or anything. It's just that if you're going to get hurt, I'd rather it be by my hand." 

Wendy shook her head at Gajeel. "We're your friends. No, we're your family, Natsu." She reminded the dragon slayer. "We've only ever had each other, even before the dragons." 

"Guys, I really appreciate the sentiment," he glanced at Gajeel, "Well, maybe not yours so much, but I'm fine, I really am." 

Gajeel snorted but didn’t add anything. 

“Can you at least stay home tonight, give yourself time to heal some more and rest?” Wendy pleaded, “It’s been a really long time since we all hung out together.” She fixed her large innocent eyes on him. 

In fact, Natsu noticed, they were all looking at him with sad eyes. _Nothing like some blatant manipulation to foster family togetherness._ It was going to be a long night, but he couldn’t deny them. They were right, it had been a while since they’d spent a night together. 

Erza usually tried to schedule them in the daytime, leaving the night shift for the older members who lived in the town. But Gajeel and Sting were often in trouble and were forced to stay for long shifts as punishment. Natsu was usually in that camp as well, but he couldn't afford to get in trouble at the moment. It would interfere with his night patrols. 

He smiled at them in agreement, and they all relaxed. Gajeel gave him a knowing look but didn't argue. He would go out as soon as they were all asleep, he knew Gajeel wouldn't stop him. 

Sting and Rogue went out to hunt for some food while Natsu started a fire. They sat down around it. 

“What’s going on with Sting and Rogue?” Natsu asked, realizing he hadn’t seen much of them lately. 

Wendy immediately blushed all the way to the roots of her hair, while Gajeel merely looked amused. 

“What?” Natsu asked, confused by Wendy’s reaction. 

"Let's just say that they're doing what you only wish you were doing with the ice freak," Gajeel smirked. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Natsu protested, but the fact that his face matched Wendy’s was not particularly convincing. 

Gajeel only laughed knowingly. “Please! I’ve seen how you look at him.” 

"So they're together?" Natsu asked, once his face had returned to its natural color. 

“For a few months now.” Wendy smiled. 

Nastu wondered how he could have missed it. Sting was his best friend, had he really been that out of it since his father left? 

“They haven’t really told anyone,” Wendy assured him. 

Still, he should've noticed. Then again, he realized with a touch of guilt, he'd never told Sting anything about his feelings for Gray either. 

“Yeah, so don’t expect the food to get here anytime soon.” Gajeel teased them, clearly enjoying their discomfort. He sniggered and slapped his knee as he watched both their faces change colors again. “You two are too easy!” 

"What _'s_ going on with Gray?" Wendy asked, shyly. 

“Nothing, we’re just friends,” Natsu replied, and that was true enough. 

“But don’t you want him to be more?” 

_I care about you, Natsu._

Those words gave him hope, they gave him warmth, but they were also empty. Nothing had really changed. “It doesn’t matter what I want, as long as his views on dragons remain unchanged, friends is all we can ever be.” 

Wendy insisted, “But he’s your m--” 

“Friend, he’s my friend.” Natsu hurriedly interrupted before she could say the word. He couldn’t explain why he didn’t want anyone but Wendy to know Gray was his mate, but he felt the need to keep it a secret. 

“What do you think they’re doing now?” Natsu examined Gajeel’s face, at first thinking he was still giving them a hard time about Sting and Rogue, but he saw a wistfulness there that didn’t match up. Natsu realized that Gajeel was talking about their parents. 

“Definitely fighting, Atlas and Igneel are probably bickering about something,” Natsu replied with a smile. 

The other two chuckled, knowing it was true. Those two were continually bickering, in a way only they could, having known each other for hundreds of years. 

“Yeah, Metalicana is probably pissing someone off,” Gajeel added. Natsu and Wendy nodded in agreement. 

“Grandine is, she’s --,” Wendy tried to come up with something funny, but ended up crying instead. 

Gajeel and Natsu moved to either side of her and tried to comfort her. 

“She’ll be alright, Kid, “ Gajeel assured her, “Grandine is tough. Heck, she keeps the others in line, doesn’t she?” 

Wendy managed a chuckle through her tears, knowing that much was true. Dragons were not very sociable by nature. Having so many different types of dragons living together was often quite tricky. Grandine always put them in their place, though. Even Igneel, much to everyone's amusement. 

“Jeel is right, Wendy.” Natsu kissed the top of Wendy’s head and called Gajeel by a nickname he rarely used. “I’m sure she’s doing fine.” 

“I’m just so worried.” Wendy said, “I had nothing to lose before, you know? I just… I don’t want to lose her.” 

Gajeel nodded in agreement, he didn't often admit it, but he was very fond of his adopted father. He boasted, "Metalicana could probably end the war single-handedly but with the others helping, they should be back any day." 

"They'd never both left before, you know?" Natsu added, "You'd think I'd be excited, I can do anything I want for the first time in my life, but I just want them to come home." 

“Do you think we’ll ever have to go fight too?” Wendy asked, her voice quavering. 

“Igneel promised me that would never happen,” Natsu told her before she could work herself up any further. 

All three of them remained silent after that, not wanting to voice any of the worries they each held in their hearts. 

“I hear congratulations are in order,” Natsu said, much to the confusion of Gajeel and Wendy. 

Sting and Rogue walked into the cave a minute later, carrying the carcass of an elk between them. They shared a look, and Rogue nodded, going off to prepare the meat for them to cook and eat. 

"Yeah, I meant to tell you," Sting said, looking somewhat uncomfortable, "The right opportunity never came up, and I didn't want you to feel uhm...bad?" 

“Why would I feel bad Sting?” Natsu replied, “I’m happy for you guys. I guess this explains why I haven’t seen as much of you.” 

Gajeel and Wendy moved away from Natsu and went to help Rogue, giving the two friends some space to talk. 

“No, you haven’t seen much of me because you’re never around,” Sting retorted, “You’re either with Gray or off doing whatever it is you do. We barely ever see you outside of work.” 

“That’s not fair, Sting. I can’t really do anything about either of those things.” Natsu pointed out, “I’m here _now_.” 

Sting pouted but was soon cajoled into telling Natsu all about what had happened with Rogue. The others joined them, and the smell of cooking meat soon filled the cave. They spent the rest of the night eating, talking and laughing. Natsu was glad they'd gotten to spend some time together. He hadn't realized the others were as worried about their dragons as he was. 

Once all of them were asleep, he got up to do his patrol. He noticed Sting and Rogue snuggled up together and smiled. Someday, he told himself. Someday that would be him and Gray. 

“Be careful.” Natsu heard a low growl and stopped. He nodded and gave Gajeel a backward wave as he left the main room and walked towards the cave exit, only transforming once he was there. He flew out into the night. 

Gajeel waited a few minutes before getting up to make sure Gray wasn’t able to follow Natsu. A small part of him wondering if he was doing the right thing. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I finished editing early so I figured I'd just go ahead and post the chapter a day early. I finally managed to get all the dragon slayers together at the same time! I kind of want to write some side stories after the story is finished with them as kids, to explore Natsu and Sting's friendship more, among other things. Hopefully, I'll still be up for it after I'm done.
> 
> I know there will be at least one additional one-shot in this world to resolve a conflict that couldn't really be addressed in the story.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9 

  
Natsu had lost track of the passage of time, he just knew that well over a year had passed since the dragons had left. His days passed in a high-speed blur, but he kept up with his duties as best he could. He spent his days with Gray, patrolling the village or training, while his nights were spent in his dragon form, checking out any possible threat to the village.  
  
He was always tired, there was just no way around it. It wasn’t uncommon to find him sleeping in the field, too exhausted to make the trek up the mountain before first taking a nap. Quite often he’d wake to find Gray sitting beside him, almost like he was watching over him. Natsu had asked him several times why he did that and the best answer he’d gotten was that Erza had sent him to make sure Natsu was not attacked while he slept. He wasn’t sure he believed that. The way Gray looked away when he answered made Natsu think there was more to it than that.  
  
Natsu had started to wonder whether he had less control over their bond in his sleep. Could he be calling Gray to him? He wished Igneel was around so that he could ask him if that was possible, but they hadn’t received any word from their parents since they’d left. This in itself was not unusual, but their previous trips had only lasted for a couple of months at a time, and Natsu couldn’t help but worry. Any news they received came from people visiting the village, and they were usually grim.  
  
Times were getting desperate, just last week they’d heard of a large group of bandits that had been trying to steal from travelers near Talos. Erza had sent him, Gray, and Rogue to take care of it, while she and Lyon detoured the travelers through safer, lesser-known routes. The bandits had not put up much of a fight, and with their combined force, they had been able to subdue them easily.  
  
There had been no additional dragon sightings since the incident that had caused them to be teamed up by Erza. However, it was not unusual to see groups of people fleeing to any village that would take them after having theirs destroyed by a dragon attack. Plenty of these had now made their way to Talos.  
  
Natsu hated to see these most of all. He could almost touch the anger trickling out of Gray as he watched the survivors set up ragtag camps wherever they were allowed. It was a harsh reminder of what he had endured, and it reinforced every one of his negative feelings, making Natsu feel like screaming at the unfairness of it all.  
  
So far they had been lucky. The village elders had not had to send anyone away. Talos was prosperous enough that it could support more people than currently lived there. Anna set about reopening the orphanage and school for the children that had settled into the village, many of who had lost their parents. Wendy and Gray helped her in their free time, while the other dragon slayers assisted with the building maintenance whenever they could.  
  
With more people to protect, the responsibility of the night patrols weighed even more heavily on an already burdened Natsu. He’d begun staying out even later and patrolling even further, trying to identify threats before they became a problem.  
  
It had taken several months, but Natsu had gotten stronger and more comfortable in his dragon form. He could now fly for more extended periods as his wings grew more powerful with daily use. He'd begun practicing lessons learned long ago from both his father and uncle as a way of preparing for the day when the war reached Talos. He refused to let another dragon hurt Gray or anyone else under his protection.  
  
O-o  
  
Gray had gotten to know Wendy better since they’d both started helping Anna at the orphanage. He’d found he really liked the youngest dragon slayer. She was sweet, kind and funny and her cheerful attitude was contagious. The kids liked her too, they usually rushed to her side the moment she arrived. 

Usually, when they helped Anna, Wendy and Gray played with the kids or read them stories while Anna busied herself with any number of tasks that always required her attention. 

Today, however, they were changing bedsheets in the large bedroom all the children shared. Gray tried very hard not to count how many of the beds were being used. This is the life that would have awaited him if Ur hadn’t taken him in. 

Gray helped out as much as he could. All the guards did, even Natsu. The kids loved to watch the two of them do tricks with their ice and fire magic and sometimes much to their delight Natsu and Gray would put on a spar for them when Anna wasn’t watching. 

“You guys grew up here, didn’t you?” Gray asked Wendy as he noticed her staring off into space. 

She smiled at him and said. “Yeah, my bed was that one over there.” She pointed to the bed that was nearest the windows. “The boys all let me have it cause I was scared of the dark.” 

“Ever since Natsu found out,” Wendy’s face shaped itself into the adoring expression she always saved for the Fire Dragon Slayer, “He always made sure all the lanterns in the cave were lit for me before I fell asleep.” 

Gray smiled at Wendy, that was very much the type of thing that Natsu would do. “I keep forgetting that Natsu didn’t live here with you guys.” 

“No, Natsu grew up alone. His mother died when he was born.” Wendy lowered her head, it had always made her sad that Natsu never got to meet his mother. “I’ve heard from others in the village that she was a very talented healer. She made potent potions and used powerful healing magic”. 

“Apparently she was as famous for her short temper as she was for her healing ability,” Wendy managed a smile, “I guess Natsu must take after her, huh?” 

Gray silently agreed, “I guess that must be why he has healing magic,” Gray wanted to ask if Natsu’s father had been a fire mage but knew he couldn’t betray Natsu’s secret. 

“You know about that?” Wendy asked surprised, “I didn’t think he’d ever told anyone. I only know because he’s had to heal me a few times since I can’t heal myself.” 

“I didn’t know it was a secret,” He shouldn’t have been surprised though, there was so much about Natsu that was a mystery. “He healed me once.” 

“I guess that’s not so surprising considering…,” Wendy looked like she had been about to say more but she only smiled and changed the subject. “Anyway, Natsu’s father took her death very badly. He took Natsu and left the village, moving them to a cave in the mountains. None of us even knew he existed until Anna brought him to the school.” 

“I knew his mother had died, but I didn’t realize.” Gray had thought back to when they had first met, there was so much Natsu had said that he hadn’t taken seriously. He’d thought Natsu was playing make-believe, the idea of living in a cave had seemed ridiculous to someone who had grown up in a house. It had been part of Natsu’s appeal, being with him had been an adventure. One that had ended much too soon. 

Natsu had been a wonderful distraction for Gray at a time when his world had just fallen apart. There had been a few times as he got older that Gray thought he might have imagined him to ease his grief. Even so, he’d never given up hope that they would meet again. 

“That’s right, I forgot you two already knew each other. How did that happen anyway? It must have happened before we met him.” Wendy looked very interested and Gray decided he might as well tell her all he could. 

“I found him in the woods, dangling in a tree when we were eight years old,” Gray told her solemnly. “He was caught on his scarf.” 

Wendy covered her mouth but Gray could still hear her peals of laughter. They continued to move from bed to bed, replacing the dirty sheets with clean ones. 

“Once I saw what was wrong, I grabbed a knife and managed to somehow climb up the tree to get him down.” Gray continued, enjoying the memory in spite of himself. 

Wendy gasped in horror, “Not his scarf?” 

“Yep, that was my plan.” Gray agreed. “I was going to cut the scarf and set him free, except the idiot started panicking and letting go of the branch to protect the scarf. He told me it was the only thing he had of his mother.” 

“Poor Natsu!” Wendy exclaimed in horror, they all knew how much that scarf meant to him. He only took it off to bathe. 

“Poor Natsu?” Gray feigned annoyance, “What about poor me? I had to figure out a way to free him without getting both of us killed.” 

“But you did.” Wendy pointed out. 

“Indeed I did.” Gray smiled fondly. “We traveled together for a few days, searching for the next village. It was kind of like traveling with a wild creature.” He chuckled as he recalled how difficult it had been to keep Natsu under control. “He sniffed the air a lot and chased after every sound, I had to keep grabbing him and bringing him back to the path.” 

Wendy laughed out loud, probably able to picture it quite vividly. “He was like that at school too. Poor Anna, he drove her crazy!” 

They both laughed together as they remembered Natsu as a child. 

“Well he drove _me_ crazy too, but he was a good hunter and very warm to sleep with at night,” Gray remembered how much fun they’d had until he’d screwed everything up. “ Even though we were lost and scared, we still played and managed to have fun. So it wasn’t all bad.” 

“Why do you sound so sad?” Wendy noticed the sudden change in Gray’s face and wondered what else might have happened. 

“The time we spent together was the only time I was able to not think about my parents’ death and the destruction of our village, but we had a fight and I hurt him.” Gray still struggled with the guilt of having struck Natsu in anger, “I didn’t mean to but I’d just woken up from a nightmare. Actually no, there was no excuse. He ran away from me, and his uncle found him and brought him back here.” 

Wendy nodded in understanding and Gray decided this was a good time to ask some of the questions he didn’t feel comfortable asking Natsu. 

“Wendy, can I ask you something?” 

“Sure, here help me with this one. It’s stuck.” Wendy kept tugging at the fitted sheet and Gray lifted the mattress to help her. 

“Did you really get your magic from the dragons?” Gray asked carefully, letting go of the mattress when she was done. 

“Yes, we all did. They cast a spell and enchanted us with it.” 

“But why, why would they do that?” Gray just couldn’t wrap his head around the idea. 

“From what I understand, the war had been at a stalemate for a long time, Atlas and Igneel hoped that by empowering humans to fight alongside the dragons they could help put an end to the senseless slaughter, and save more lives. Natsu was the first,” Wendy explained, “He’s been with the dragons the longest.” 

“Atlas and Igneel?” Gray repeated slowly. He knew Atlas was the dragon Erza had told him about, the one that had given Natsu his dragon magic, but the name Igneel did not sound familiar. 

“Those are Natsu’s dragons,” Wendy revealed, “ Atlas is the one who created the spell that gave us our magic.” 

“So, you were all really adopted by dragons?” 

“Yes! I was adopted by the Sky Dragon Grandine, she’s amazing.” Wendy’s face lit up as she talked of her adoptive mother, “She taught me all the spells I use to heal you guys. A lot of defensive spells too. I’m not as strong a fighter as the others yet, but I can help them when they fight.” Wendy added proudly. 

Gray smiled and ruffled her hair, he’d seen Wendy fight many times. She was a fierce warrior, and she’d definitely shown Lyon what she was capable of that first day. Gray still teased him about it. 

“I just find that so hard to accept,” Gray said honestly, how could he even begin to fathom such a thing when he could still remember what happened to his village so vividly? 

“I know you had a bad experience with a dragon, but they’re not all bad, Gray.” Wendy sighed, “Our dragons would never do anything to hurt humans. I miss Grandine a lot.” 

“She went off to fight too?” Gray asked. He’d never dared ask Natsu about the dragons even though he was curious, it was a taboo topic for them. 

“Yeah, they all did.” Wendy agreed, “I wish they’d come back soon. When I see all this,” She pointed at the room and at the refugee camp that was visible through the windows. “I worry, we all do.” 

“If even _they_ aren’t able to put a stop to this stupid war, what can we hope to do?” Gray heard the fear in Wendy’s voice and quickly moved to comfort her. 

“Don’t think that way, Wendy. If trouble comes, we’ll be here to fight it.” Gray looked out the window at the kids playing outside, “We’ll do everything we can to keep them safe.” 

“I just hope we’re enough,” Wendy said solemnly. 

Gray did as well. He thought of all the people already affected with a sinking heart. For the first time, he found himself hoping that the so-called good dragons won the war. They continued their task in silence. 

O-o 

Morale in the guard was at an all-time low. The refugee camps brought home the fact that the war was closing in on their doorstep. Their side was losing, and their parents hadn't returned. All the dragon slayers were worried, and with Natsu too tired to be his usual cheerful self, there was no one to keep their minds off of the uncertainty. Erza was not much better, her mother was also fighting and had been gone for years at this point. Irene had sent messages back with the dragons from time to time, but with them gone, Erza could only hope that her mother was still alive.  
  
Gray and Lyon didn't really know how to help them, so they watched helplessly as their friends descended into deeper and deeper gloom. Until the day Lyon had an idea. 

He'd been walking around the village, looking at all the changes that had transpired in the short month since the camps had been built. All the people walked around with an air of fear as if they were merely waiting for the other shoe to drop. They all needed something to cheer them up, to make them feel alive.  
  
“We should hold a festival,” Lyon said it out loud, listening to the words to see if they sounded less insane than they did in his head. He found nothing wrong with them so he changed his direction and hurried to Erza’s office knowing that she would still be there. If anyone could help him do this, it was her.  
  
Lyon burst into her office, too excited by what he had to say to think of the repercussions of such an action. Erza looked up from her desk absently, her jaw jutting out in disapproval. Lyon studied at her with dismay. It’s not that he wanted to be yelled at or injured in some way, but the fact that she barely registered his presence showed how much she had changed.  
  
Lyon really hoped that this idea of his would help to improve things in the village. Something had to. He could feel Erza's eyes on him, and he willed himself to not sound like a complete idiot in front of the girl he liked. He wished he’d waited for Gray, he was so much better at talking to Erza.  
  
"Can I help you in some way, Lyon?" Erza was beginning to look annoyed, and so he quickly blathered the first things that came to his mind, like he always did around her.  
  
"I was walking through the village and noticing the new people in the camps, and it was a really nice day, but they looked sad, and so I thought that we should do something to change that." Lyon kept going on and on. "Not that they aren't happy here, I'm sure they are. But you know what happened to them was sad." He screamed at himself to stop talking, but he couldn't seem to.  
  
Erza’s eyes were piercing into him, even as she tried to be patient. He managed to stop his idiocy and was about to open his mouth again when Gray knocked on the door and entered.  
  
“You were asking for me?” Gray asked Erza, eyebrow arched.  
  
_Ugh, why can’t I talk to her like that?_  
  
“Oh, hey Lyon.” Gray greeted him, “What are you doing here?”  
  
“I think we should hold a festival for the village.” Lyon managed to get out, sending the words more at Gray than at Erza.  
  
_Goddammit! Why couldn’t I just say that in the first place?_  
  
“A festival?” Erza leaned forward in her desk, “I don’t know Lyon, these people just lost everything. It might send the wrong message.”  
  
He could feel Gray’s eyes on him and refused to meet them. He didn’t need to see the smirk that he already knew his brother would not even be attempting to hide. So he was surprised when the little shit was actually supportive for once.  
  
“I think it’s a good idea,” Gray said slowly, mulling the idea over. He thought about his talk with Wendy the previous day. “Everyone has been so down lately. We could have a welcome festival.”  
  
“It will give people something to do and look forward to,” Lyon added, once again directing his words at his brother. “It doesn’t have to be anything big.”  
  
“Of course it does!” Erza said enthusiastically. “You’re both right, we’ve all been a bit down of late. This could be exactly what everyone needs.”  
  
"We need a planning committee, Lyon and I can do that!" Erza smiled warmly at Lyon, and he could feel his insides melting as his lips stretched into what he hoped was not a creepy smile. Although Gray's snort was not really boosting his confidence any.  
  
“I can help if you’d like.” Gray offered, “We can all pitch in.”  
  
“I’m sure Lyon and I can handle it,” Erza assured Gray. Lyon tried to hide how panicked he felt, this might be the opportunity he’d been hoping for, but now that it was here he was terrified of making a fool of himself. 

“So, why did you call me?” Gray asked again. He was supposed to meet Natsu in a few minutes for a training spar at their field. 

“I was wondering, have you made any progress finding out what Natsu is up to?” Erza asked. 

Gray shook his head, “Gajeel always smells me coming and won’t let me go any further, and the Flame Brain just clams up whenever I ask.” 

“Gajeel!” Erza growled, “I’ll just have to have a talk with him myself.” 

“Yeah, good luck with that,” Gray said, they both knew that Gajeel was the only one of the dragon slayers that was not afraid of her. He did whatever he wanted and took his punishments without complaint. Erza would get nothing out of the Iron Dragon Slayer and she knew it. 

Gray waved goodbye to Lyon and Erza who had begun discussing plans for the festival. He wished his brother luck in his mind, the poor guy was due a break. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Alright this is the last setup chapter, things will start moving on the next chapter, both in the story and with Gray and Natsu! Next update will be on June 22.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10 

The patrol had begun like any other, Natsu had waited for the others to fall asleep and left using the rear entrance. He flew around the mountains keeping his eye out for nests or any other signal that enemy dragons were nearby. He’d only encountered a few so far, but they’d been smaller than him. All it had taken was a few roars and some aggressive flying to convince them that they should go somewhere else. He’d never even had to use his breath weapon.  
  
He just had to be thorough and make sure he marked enough areas that other dragons would think twice before encroaching his territory. Marking was an unusually long and tedious process, but it was necessary and needed to be done daily. It was the most important part of his job.  
  
Atlas had taught him how to secrete a particular solution into his saliva. He used it to mark as many surfaces as he could, slowly outlining the vast swath of land he had claimed as his territory. With so many people living in the town, Natsu had expanded it to the point it now took him about four hours to mark all of it.  
  
Natsu finished his marking. His mouth felt dry, but the unpleasant taste didn't bother him anymore. Erza hadn’t scheduled them for first shift in the morning so he might actually get a full night's sleep for once. He was really looking forward to that.  
  
He felt something cold cover his wings, colder than any of Gray's attacks. Natsu tried to shake it off but instead found that he wasn't able to move his wings at all. He'd let himself get distracted, and he should have known better.  
  
Natsu panicked and let out his most ferocious roar as he began to fall. He still hadn’t even seen what had attacked him. He kept trying to move his wings hoping the effect was temporary, but no matter how much strength he used they wouldn’t budge. A flash of silver wings entered his field of vision, too fast to even focus on as he continued to fall. The dragon circled him, and Natsu was finally able to see it properly. It was a silver dragon, smaller in size than Natsu but apparently more experienced in combat. 

  
_Fuck!_ He’d never been attacked by a dragon before, and he couldn't seem to remember a single thing that Igneel and Atlas had taught him. He howled in pain as he felt something even colder pierce the scales on his back. He’d never been so scared in his life.  
  
_Think Natsu! Everything depends on you. If he kills you, he'll attack the village and kill everyone in it. It's all up to you._  
  
He could hear Igneel’s patient voice in his head, “Natsu, the most important thing in a battle is to keep your head. You have plenty of weapons at your disposal, but if you let yourself panic, you’ve already lost.”  
  
_Calm down... How in the hell am I supposed to do that when I’m being attacked by something I can’t see while not being able to fly?_

  
Natsu closed his eyes, knowing that despite his thoughts he had to try. He held on to the soothing sound of his father’s voice and managed to slow down the accelerated beating of his terrified heart. He quickly switched his thoughts to Gray, using his love for him to try to bolster his ebbing morale. There was no way in hell he would allow something that horrible to happen to his mate again. When he opened his eyes, they glowed, reflecting his newfound determination to live and to protect the people that were most important to him.  
  
_Fuck this, this is not where I die!_  
  
Natsu roared as loudly as he could and heated his body more and more until he was covered in his hottest blue flames. It made him feel more confident, and he found that within a few seconds he was able to move his wings again. He quickly got his descent under control and flew up to meet his opponent, his breath weapon already aimed at the smaller silver dragon that had attacked him.  
  
He got as close as he dared before unleashing what even he acknowledged was an unnecessarily large cone of fire. Attacking from behind might be a good strategy but it was cowardly, and Natsu was pissed. The amount of pain he felt in his back worried him, and he didn’t want this fight to go for very long.  
  
The silver dragon hadn’t moved much, apparently too surprised to understand what was coming his way. Natsu heard the other dragon hiss as the fire made contact with his face. Instead of retreating as Natsu had hoped, the silver dragon flew straight at him and used the double talons on his wings to quickly impale Natsu’s side as he flew past him.  
  
Natsu could feel the blood gush out of the puncture wounds and he quickly cauterized them, ignoring the pain for the moment. He made sure to not take his eyes off his foe, the bastard had earned his complete attention. Battle lust was taking over, and Natsu channeled even more fire to his hindquarters. He charged at the dragon and used the extra thrust to power his kick. The silver dragon was thrust away from him.  
  
He peered at Natsu warily, the fight no longer looking as easy as it had. Natsu marked the indecision and used it to his advantage. He unleashed another ridiculously large cone of fire and roared loudly, stretching his wings and the rest of his body to make himself look as large as possible. The silver dragon turned tail and flew away. Natsu followed until he was satisfied the dragon had left his territory.  
  
_That’s right, asshole! Turn and run!_  
  
He had so much adrenaline flowing through his body that he managed to make it three-quarters of the way home before his injuries began to bother him. He was suddenly overcome with fatigue. He felt heavy, and his thoughts were starting to become disjointed. The last thing he remembered was falling.  


O-o 

  
Natsu heard noises he didn’t recognize and opened his eyes. He tried to sit up but now that he had moved his back felt like it was burning up, which for him was strange. There was also a pain in his side. _Ow?_  
  
The small clearing he was in looked familiar, and he could smell himself, so it was definitely an area he’d marked the night before. It took him a minute to realize that he wasn’t alone. There was a red dragon sitting some feet away. It looked to be a wyrmling. He looked at Natsu with curious eyes.  
  
“Are you well, your Highness?” The dragon asked him in an overly formal tone.  
  
“Your High--, what?” Natsu asked in confusion.  
  
“Your Highness. That is who you are, is it not, son of Igneel?” The dragon looked at him with deference. Natsu was well aware of who he was, but to be called that while in his human form was disconcerting.  
  
Wait, his human form? When had he changed back? He decided not to waste much time worrying about it, not when even the slightest movement made him wish he was dead. 

  
“I _am_ the son of Igneel,” Natsu agreed. He couldn’t help but feel like he somehow knew this dragon. He shifted to get a better look and had to bite his lip to keep himself from crying out. Now that he’d been recognized he felt like he needed to live up to his role. “How did you know?” 

“You smell like him.”  
  
“Hey, don’t I know you from somewhere?” Natsu asked, trying to place the wyrmling. He didn’t exactly see many young dragons, except for that _one_. Could it be?  
  
“Yes, Your Highness,” The wyrmling replied, “You and the Sky Dragon Grandine’s daughter saved my life.”  
  
“I’m glad to see that Wendy was able to help you. I was worried.” Natsu smiled at the wyrmling, glad to see him doing better. “You don’t need to be so formal, my name is Natsu.”  


“Natsu,” The wyrmling repeated cheerfully, “Aye, sir!” 

Natsu had to smile at the wyrmling’s enthusiasm. He supposed he could live with an occasional sir. It was better than Your Highness. 

  
He tried to sit up again but grimaced at the immediate jolt of pain that shot up his back. He sank back down in frustration. He needed to get himself to help.  
  
The wyrmling whimpered sympathetically at Natsu’s obvious discomfort. “You’re hurt, can I help?”  
  
“Do you think you can get me back to my cave?” Natsu hoped no one had woken up in his absence, he didn’t want to worry his friends. He supposed he should have anticipated this would happen eventually. A small smile teased his lips as he thought about the fact that while he might not exactly have won the fight, he didn’t lose it either.  
  
The wyrmling nodded eagerly. Picking Natsu up as gently as he could manage he took off in the direction of the cave, which Natsu supposed all red dragons knew about. Natsu contained his screams as best he could, so as not to scare the young dragon. The pain in his back, as the cold air pressed against his injuries, was overwhelming. He bore it for as long as he could but made no effort to fight the darkness that engulfed him, already looking forward to the relief it promised.  
  
o-o  
  
“How many more times are we going to do this?” Gajeel growled at the oncoming figure of the ice mage. “You’re never going to get past me.”  
  
They'd had this fight almost every night for the last few months. Gray getting progressively more clever in his attempts to reach their cave. Gajeel noticed, however, that this time there was something different, the ice mage looked agitated, and it unsettled him. He didn't believe in premonitions but he couldn't deny the chill that had settled over him, and for once he was sure it didn’t come from the ice mage.  
  
He had a job to do, however. “When are you going to get it through your skull that if Salamander wanted you to know what he was up to, he’d tell you himself.”  
  
“Gajeel, I’m only going to tell you this once,” Gray snarled, “Get out of my way.”  
  
Gajeel had never seen him look this hostile before. Had something happened?  
  
“Can’t do that.” Gajeel crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Go home.”  
  
He could feel the air around him freeze to temperatures that would be considered dangerous even to him. There was no mistaking the source. This was all very out of character. Gajeel could be dense, but he wasn’t stupid. Those two were close, something was up.  
  
“What’s wrong?” Gajeel stubbornly refused to let Gray see that his magic was affecting him in any way, although he was uncomfortable as hell.  
  
“I don’t know exactly,” Gray admitted with some reluctance, “I heard him call for me, he’s hurt.”  
  
“Whoa, what do you mean you heard him call for you?” Gajeel asked in disbelief, “What are you talking about?”  
  
“I don’t have time for this, move out of the way,” Gray tried to advance but Gajeel refused to budge, “I _will_ freeze you.”  
  
Usually, Gajeel would have laughed at the attempt at intimidation, but he could see Gray was very much on edge and he wouldn't put it past him to make good on his threat. As he debated what to do, he heard the sound of dragon wings approaching and tensed.  
  
_Shit!_ He was well aware of the ice mage's stance on dragons, and he was already riled up. Gajeel risked a peek and saw a young red dragon holding something, no, someone, in its talons. Although it was still some distance away, he was able to see that it was Natsu the dragon was carrying. The ice mage had been correct, Natsu was indeed in trouble.  
  
Sting and Rogue chose that moment to come out of the cave, both rubbing the sleep out of their eyes. “What’s with all the yelling? We were hoping to get a bit more sleep, we have the morning shift, you know?”  
  
Sting looked around Gajeel and to his surprise saw Gray standing near the entrance of the cave, “What’s Gray doing here?" 

Rogue nudged him to be quiet and then, while pointing at the sky added, "Look over there." 

"Is that Natsu?" Sting asked in disbelief. "Rogue, go wake up Wendy." 

Rogue hurried inside, and quiet noises could be heard from inside the cave. A sleepy Wendy ventured out in her pajamas. 

  
“What’s going on?” Wendy grumbled cutely, as she also rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.  
  
"Wendy, is that--?" Sting sounded hesitant to complete his thought, and Wendy was soon able to see why.  
  
“Yeah, it is,” She said quietly. As the dragon got closer, Wendy recognized the scar she hadn’t been able to heal completely.  
  
The dragonslayers were so intent on the incoming dragon that they failed to notice Gray going around Gajeel and running towards the rapidly approaching red dragon.  
  
“Natsu?!” Gray yelled with undisguised concern. He continued yelling, trying to get a response from his partner. He heard a response in his head.  


_Gods Gray, could you please stop yelling, it fucking hurts!_  
  
_You’re okay!_ Gray became eerily quiet, and then a beatific smile exploded on his lips. _Wait, you can hear me?_  
  
_Yeah, Ice Block. I can hear you. Don’t do anything stupid to the dragon, you’ve already hurt him once._

_  
_ "He's okay!" Gray yelled happily to the others. The dragonslayers looked at each other in confusion. 

"I think he's finally lost it," Gajeel watched the ice mage, mesmerized. 

"All that ice," Sting said slowly, "it must have finally affected his brain." 

Wendy frowned at the two dragon slayers before looking back at the dragon. It would land any minute. She noticed that even though it was holding on to Natsu carefully, it kept looking at them nervously. No, not at them, at Sting and Gray. Of course! The unfortunate thing was probably still scared of them. He circled above them. 

"Sting, Gray, you need to leave," Wendy commanded. They both immediately protested. 

"Come on, Sting, " Rogue grabbed Sting's hand and tugged, leading him down the mountain path. "We'll get some breakfast in the village." 

"I'm not going anywhere," Gray announced, crossing his arms in front of his chest. 

"You brought this on yourself," Gajeel said, quickly understanding what Wendy was getting at. "That's the dragon you attacked, moron. So if you want your boyfriend to get healed, then you better make yourself scarce." 

"He's not my boyfriend, and I'm not going anywhere," Gray repeated, his tone even more determined than before. 

"Whatever you say, Ice Princess," Gajeel smirked, "Remind me again why you're here?" 

"Just shut up," a red-faced Gray replied. 

"You're both being childish," Wendy scolded, " I'm sorry Gray, but I'm not sure the dragon will come down with you here. Now both of you stop wasting time, I need to look at Natsu's injuries." 

When neither of them had made a move, Wendy growled in anger. She gestured to Gajeel and snapped," Just take him into one of the rooms!" 

"Fine," Gajeel grabbed Gray by the arm and dragged him inside. 

The dragon descended slowly, being careful not to jostle Natsu with his movement. He touched down gently and showed the body to Wendy. 

"Natsu’s hurt," The dragon told her, "Can you help him?" 

Wendy smiled and nodded. She moved slowly, trying to remember the sounds she had imitated last time, wanting the dragon to remain calm while he was holding Natsu. Even though he would still be considered young in dragon terms, he had doubled in size since the last time she’d seen him. 

"Can you bring him inside?" Wendy asked. 

The dragon shook his head, "I shouldn’t enter Igneel's cave." 

"I'm sure Igneel wouldn't mind," Wendy assured him, "Natsu is very important to him." 

The dragon looked nervous but must have seen the wisdom in her words for he carried Natsu inside and put him down where Wendy showed him. She noticed that he put Natsu down on his stomach and was about to ask why, when she noticed the angry looking burns with more apparently trailing up his back under the black vest he always wore. 

Wendy hissed at the sight. She asked the dragon to hold Natsu up again so she could remove his vest, wanting to get a better look at his back. When Natsu was once again on the ground, she got to work. 

She could hear Gajeel and Gray arguing about Natsu somewhere in the cave, but she tuned them out. She didn’t have time to worry about anyone but her patient. 

The burns that covered Natsu’s back were puffy and swollen with liquid. They had an unhealthy bluish tint to them, even though the edges were a sickly gray. Upon further examination, she saw another wound near his hip bone that looked like it had been cauterized. She’d have to wait until she was able to turn him over to get a better look at it. She touched one of the burns gently, only to hear Gray yell from wherever he and Gajeel were. 

She startled at the unexpected noise. She thought about what had just happened and gently touched a different burn. As she expected, Gray howled again. Wendy looked down at Natsu and smiled happily. She thought things might be going better between the two boys than Natsu realized. 

Regardless of how Gray and Natsu might pretend to feel about each other at the moment, the fact that Gray was capable of both hearing Natsu in his mind, and feel some of his pain could only mean that their bond had strengthened since Gray had arrived in Talos. Gray was acting the role of a protective mate, whether he realized it or not.  
  
Wendy heard the dragon whimper and looked up to see that Gray had walked away from Gajeel and found his way into the main room. The sight of a proud dragon behaving that way made Wendy angry and she had half a mind to touch another one of Natsu’s burns, but she controlled herself. 

Gray was surprised by the intensity of the glare that Wendy sent his direction. He raised his hands up in a gesture of peace, letting her know he had no interest in starting anything. Gray was well aware that any aggression on his part would not only get him kicked out of the cave but would immediately put him into a fight with Gajeel. He was there for Natsu, as long as the dragon didn't do anything he was willing to let it go this once. 

The dragon continued to cower, whimpering in the shadows.  
  
Wendy looked at it with sorrow, “Why don’t you follow Natsu’s scent to his room, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”  
  
The dragon did just that, keeping to the shadows the whole way. Once he was gone, Wendy brought her attention back to the unconscious Natsu. Gray had moved closer, examining Natsu’s back.  
  
Wendy watched him clench his fists, face contorted in abject fury. “What’s the matter, Gray?”  
  
“Those are ice burns.” Gray fumed, “How did he get those, Wendy?”  


"Do you know anything about where he's been going?" Gray was tired of all the secrecy. He observed her, looking for any hint of deception.  
  
“I really don’t know, Gray,” Wendy replied absently, still trying to figure out the best way to tend to the burns, “Whatever he’s doing he won’t tell us, or let us help.” 

_What were you up against, Natsu? Why must you stubbornly insist on shouldering your burdens on your own?_  


As Wendy began to heal Natsu, Gray examined the ice burns on his back carefully, trying to determine who would have been able to inflict such damage. It was much worse than anything he or Lyon were capable of, and Natsu was used to fighting off ice attacks. With the burns being on his back that probably meant the attack had been unexpected. Surprising Natsu was almost impossible, his senses were extremely sharp. 

Ugh, none of this made any sense, and honestly, he just wanted Natsu back to his usual self. Gray just wanted to yell at him about what an asshole he was for making him worry all the time. 

When Gray had heard Natsu call out to him, he'd headed straight for the field, assuming he would find him there, like he always did when this happened. Gray had already come to the conclusion that Natsu wasn't aware he was doing it, yet Gray never once considered not responding to the call. 

That first moment, when Natsu awoke and opened his eyes to find him there, was the best part of Gray's day. At that moment, Natsu was at peace, and the smile that always graced his lips was happy and free and only ever directed at Gray. And even though it was fleeting, at that moment, Gray knew without a doubt that Natsu loved him. Even if he had never come anywhere close to admitting it. In that one short moment, they were happy together, and while Gray wanted more he would take what he could get. 

Natsu's burns were beginning to heal, but the progress was slow, and Gray could tell that Wendy was already tiring. Even after expending most of her magic, Natsu didn’t look much better than he had when she'd started, making Gray think that the wounds might have been much worse than they’d thought. His curiosity about this attacker was growing by the second. 

_Natsu, who did this to you?_ Gray reached out with his mind, but no answer was forthcoming. 

“I’ve done all I can for the moment,” Wendy looked at her patient, disappointed at her slow progress. “I need to go to the village to get some supplies. I’m worried those burns will get infected before I can finish healing him.” 

"I wish Grandine were here, she would have been able to help more than I did," Wendy sighed. 

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Kid. Salamander got himself hurt badly, exactly as we all predicted he would,” Gajeel spoke up, startling the two mages, who had not heard him enter the room. “You did everything you could, and you can always try again after your magic replenishes.” 

“ _I’ll_ go down to the village, Erza's going to want to know what happened. Make me a list of what you need, and I'll bring it back," Gajeel looked over at Gray, "Want me to tell Lyon where you are?" 

Gray nodded absently, eyes still on Natsu who had begun to whimper in discomfort. He wanted to make him feel better somehow, so he sat down next to Natsu’s head and ran his fingers through his hair. Though Gray was not aware of it, his face revealed more than he would like. Enough to make two dragonslayers look at each other knowingly before moving away to give them some privacy. 

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So I have to go into Boston tomorrow and that means you get the chapter one day early! :) I hope you like it, as I said things will start moving along now. Next Update will be on July 6th. 
> 
> I also wanted to let you know that Gratsu Week 2019 has announced and if you would like to participate in this year's event you can find more information on their [AO3 collection](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Gratsu_Week_2019)
> 
> My side blog fuckyeahgratsu has also announced our summer event Gratsu Bingo, I will update the information on our collection as soon as my relatives return home. Our collection is [Gratsu Bingo 2019](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Gratsu_Bingo_2019).


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11  
  
Gajeel returned with Erza, who had dragged the healer along with them. Erza gasped and covered her mouth when she saw the burns on Natsu's back, knowing that Wendy had already attempted to heal him. They'd moved Natsu to his room so he could be examined more privately. The healer showed Wendy how to dress the wounds properly until they were healed.  
  
Wendy's second attempt to heal Nasu that afternoon had much more satisfying results. The swelling went down, and Gray had been able to hold Natsu up while Wendy examined what looked to be puncture wounds in his side. She was able to heal those before once again dressing the burns, determined to keep them as clean as possible. Natsu continued to sleep, his natural regeneration also working away at his injuries, albeit slower than usual.  
  
Once the healers had finished, Gray settled in the room to wait for Natsu to wake up. It felt like he was always waiting for Natsu these days. To come to work, to wake up, to ask for help, or more importantly to realize his feelings for him. It was exhausting. 

The second he'd entered the room the wyrmling had scurried away, leaving Gray to stare after him with grudging curiosity. Where did he find Natsu? Did he see anything? Gray wished he could ask. He still didn't like the dragon, but he’d brought Natsu to them, so he couldn't exactly hate him either. He remembered what Erza had said about the red dragons and tried to think about it objectively, but he could feel the familiar rage trying to rise up to the surface.  
  
"How's he doing?" Erza had entered the ample room, walking over to where Natsu was resting to get a better look.  
  
"About the same," Gray answered, "He stopped moaning as much, I guess that means he's more comfortable."  
  
"You know it's funny, I've known these guys for so many years, and this is the first time I've been here." 

She looked around the room with interest, taking in the spartan way the room was furnished. There was a large wardrobe up against the wall as well as a dresser with a mirror hanging over it, all beautiful in workmanship but unlike anything she’d seen at any of the village stores. Natsu didn’t seem to have any personal objects outside of the scarf that he always wore, although she did see what appeared to be a hamper full of dirty clothes tucked away in a dark recess of the room. 

"I know it shouldn't surprise me, but it's so hot in here. I'm surprised you're this comfortable."  
  
"I'm not, I just don't want to leave until I know he's alright." Gray had been sweating profusely since he'd entered the cave. At first, he'd tried to use his magic to keep himself comfortable, but he'd quickly realized it was pointless. The amounts of energy he would have had to expend were humongous, and he'd have eventually run out anyway, so he'd just borne it as best he could.  
  
Erza nodded in understanding. "Considering how badly the two of you started off, I'm glad to see your friendship has improved."  
  
She looked down at Natsu sleeping peacefully, her face showing nothing but fondness. "He's such a pain in the ass, but he gets under your skin, doesn't he?"  
  
Gray snorted, that pretty much summed up their friendship as well.  
  
"Well then, let's let him rest." Erza moved to leave the room but stopped when she realized Gray wasn't following. She turned to him, the fondness quickly shifting to irritation.  
  
"Come on, we have many things to discuss as a group. Natsu will be fine for a few minutes." Erza pointed out. "Sting and Rogue have just arrived. We need to discuss what we think might have happened and how we’re going to address it."  
  
"You don't need me for that, Erza," Gray knew he was treading on dangerous ground, but he couldn't be bothered to care about anything else. Not until Natsu opened his eyes and smiled at him. He needed to know Natsu was alright, and that was making him reckless.  
  
"‘I'm not asking," Erza's tone left no room for argument, "We need to take this seriously. Something attacked Natsu, and if it's still in the area, it could head to Talos next. We need to come up with a strategy, there’s no time to waste." 

Gray remained where he was, feeling torn between his two loyalties. Something inside him was protesting loudly at the mere idea of leaving Natsu’s side when he was this vulnerable. The desire to protect his reckless partner had always been strong, but when he'd seen the extent of Natsu's injuries it had transformed into a strong need. 

All Gray could think about was how he could have lost him last night and never even known it until it was too late. That was not acceptable. His hands clenched into fists as he tried to control his anger at Erza for trying to force him away from Natsu. 

  
"You're not the only one who's worried here, Gray." Erza reminded him gently, trying her best to keep her temper under control. "We're all worried as well."  
  
Gray tried to come up with any excuse she would accept but knew there was none. He grudgingly took one last look at Natsu and got up to follow Erza to the main room. 

He looked around the large room having been too focused on Natsu when he’d first entered the cave to really pay attention. Like Natsu’s room, it was furnished sparsely. Gray could only imagine this was so the dragons could move around easily while keeping the humans comfortable. How the hell had they gotten furniture all the way up here? 

  
Sting and Rogue had brought food back with them, and Gray’s stomach growled as the smell wafted towards him. He hadn’t eaten anything all day and he was starving. He sat down with the others, and when they passed him some food he immediately devoured it, much to everyone’s amusement.  
  
"Where's Lyon? " Gray asked Erza in between bites, he was the only one of their regular group that wasn't present.  
  
"Someone had to remain in charge," Erza shrugged. They continued eating and once they were done began to discuss the events of that early morning and what it could mean for the future of their village.  
  
O-o  
  
Natsu opened his eyes slowly. It was dark but he could easily recognize the familiar smell of his room. It seemed he'd gotten back safely, he'd have to thank the wyrmling when he saw him again. His pain was much more manageable, which told him that Wendy had healed him.  
  
She was much more helpful than Atlas, who derived great enjoyment in waiting until he was awake to heal him. Natsu missed the sadistic bastard so much. His absence, much like his father's was a constant ache in his heart.  
  
Time to see how severe the damage was. He braced himself and sat up slowly. He felt stiff all over. He wasn't sure how he was going to be able to manage patrol tonight, but no matter how uncomfortable he might be, there was no other choice. The fact that a silver dragon had so brazenly encroached his territory wasn’t a good sign. Now more than ever, it was imperative that he continue his efforts.  
  
He sniffed the air and recognized the scents of Erza and Gray coming from the main room. He must have been in worse shape than he'd initially thought for them to be in their cave. He felt terrible about worrying his friends and he sure as hell wasn't looking forward to Erza's lecture but for the first time he was actually more worried about Gray’s. 

Natsu had a vague memory of hearing Gray in his head and as good as that felt, it worried him a bit. Come to think of it, how had Gray even known something was wrong? This thought ate at him the most. It added weight to the idea that he was calling Gray to him somehow. 

He sighed to himself, it’d be nice if he had a better idea of how all of this mating stuff worked. Natsu wished his father was around to help him, the Fire Dragon King had promised to do just that when he returned, but with no clue as to when that would be Natsu would just have to keep fumbling blindly on his own. Asking Sting or Rogue, the only people he knew who were mated was out of the question as that would mean admitting to them that Gray was his mate, and Natsu wasn’t ready to do that. Even though he was sure the other male dragon slayers already had their suspicions, that was not the same as declaring it and having to deal with their well-intentioned meddling. 

Natsu tried to get up slowly but it didn't matter, he still doubled over as a wave of pain exploded across his back. 

_Fuck!_

Natsu stumbled, his arm flailing in an attempt to steady himself with the nearby wall. He held on until the pain ebbed.  
  
"Natsu is feeling better?"  
  
An unexpected voice from the shadows startled him. The pain must have dulled his senses because he would have usually caught on to the dragon's presence right away.  
  
"Oh hey, you're here." Natsu summoned the energy to smile at his new friend. "I wanted to thank you for bringing me home."  
  
"I was glad to help." The wyrmling bowed his head.  
  
Natsu went to call the dragon by his name when he remembered that the little guy had never given it to him. "What should I call you?"  
  
"I don't have a name, I've always been alone." Natsu could hear the same loneliness he often felt in the dragon's voice. It made him even more outraged that this gentle creature had been so viciously attacked by his friends.  
  
"You have to have a name," Natsu argued, "How about I give you one?"  
  
The wyrmling's eyes widened in surprise, "I would be honored."  
  
Natsu thought about it for a while. He thought about how the wyrmling made him feel and smiled. "How about Happy?"  
  
"Happy?" The dragon tilted his head to the side.  
  
"Yeah, I was just thinking a few minutes ago about how much I missed my father and Atlas. Seeing another red dragon makes me feel happy."  
  
The dragon seemed to think about it for a bit and then nodded enthusiastically, making Natsu smile at his cuteness.  
  
"So Happy, how would you like to live here with me?" Natsu noticed the young dragon looking towards the main room nervously. "Don't worry, they won't hurt you. They'll have to answer to the Son of Igneel if they do, or even worse...Wendy." Natsu winked, and the dragon bowed his head in acceptance. "You can always hide in here if you need to. This is our room now."  
  
Those words seem to relax the dragon.  
  
"Do you know what time it is?"  
  
"It's dark," Happy replied.  
  
Crap! He'd need to get going. The others would probably come to check on him soon. If he didn't hurry, he'd be caught up in their interrogation.  
  
Natsu quietly exited his room and headed towards the cave exit as quickly as his injuries allowed, Happy following close behind. He truly hoped the pain would be less in his dragon form.  
  
O-o  
  
Gray listened to the dragon slayers and Erza argue. They had been talking in circles for the last hour. As Gray had suspected, there was not much they could do without knowing what exactly had attacked Natsu.  
  
None of them could come up with what could have caused Natsu's injuries, and it was unsettling. They had lived in Talos their entire lives and had never come across anything like it. Either Natsu had stumbled across some monster they weren’t familiar with, or he was attacked by a dragon. Those were the only two scenarios that seemed to make sense.  
  
Gray was getting restless, he had nothing to add to the conversation, and he’d been getting a bad feeling that made him need to go check on Natsu. When Wendy got up to do another healing pass, Gray immediately followed, ignoring Erza's irritated glance.  
  
To his surprise, Wendy was blocking the entrance to Natsu's room and refused to let him enter.  
  
"We should come back later," Wendy murmured. She avoided Gray's questioning glance and stared at the ground.  
  
"Wendy?" Gray regarded the youngest dragon slayer suspiciously, "What are you doing?"  
  
Wendy tried to come up with an acceptable excuse to keep Gray out of the empty room. "Uhm, Natsu's naked, we shouldn't bother him."  
  
"You're a terrible liar, kiddo," Gray chided her gently. "We've both seen him naked more times than we can count. What's really going on?"  
  
Wendy's shoulders slumped in resignation. "He's not in there, " she whispered.  
  
"What do you mean he's not in there?!" Gray raised his voice, drawing the attention of the others. Wendy moved out of the way, there was no sense in keeping anyone out any longer.  
  
He immediately entered the room followed by the others, all wanting to verify Wendy's words.  
  
"I'm going to kill him!' Gray roared angrily. He lashed out at Erza, "I knew I should have stayed here with him. Now, look what happened. The dumbass is off somewhere doing something stupid, while injured."  
  
Sting and Rogue went off to explore all the places Natsu could be in the cave but soon returned empty-handed.  
  
"He's not here," Rogue reported what they all already knew.  
  
"How was I supposed to know he’d go right back out again?" Erza snapped as she felt the weight of Gray's glare.  
  
Five pairs of eyes looked at her with equal amounts of disbelief.  
  
"Okay, fine," Erza admitted, "Yes, I should have realized he’d do something that stupid."  
  
"Should we go out and look for him?" Sting asked while looking around at the other slayers for confirmation.  
  
"There's no point," Gajeel replied, "Both Rogue and I have tried to track him in the past, there's no trail to follow."  
  
"How is that even possible?" Sting wondered out loud.  
  
"I don't know, but Natsu has the best senses out of all of us, maybe he figured out a way to disguise his scent." Rogue puzzled.  
  
"You're giving Salamander way too much credit," Gajeel pointed out, "I think it more likely Atlas taught him a spell or something."  
  
The other dragon slayers nodded in agreement. Both Atlas and Igneel were very skilled, even capable of creating new magic like the spell that had given them theirs.  
  
"You guys should go home, we'll deal with Salamander when he gets back," Gajeel tried to usher them out of Natsu's room."Tomorrow's going to be a long day. Once we know what happened, we can make plans."  
  
"I'm not going anywhere, " Gray insisted, stubbornly refusing to budge, "He owes me some answers, and I'm not letting him weasel out of it again."  
  
He could see the dragon slayers having what appeared to be a conversation between them even though Gray couldn’t hear any of it. He'd seen them do this before, it was annoying but par for the course when you spent your time around people with enhanced senses. Sting and Rogue shrugged their shoulders in disinterest, seemingly giving their approval. Gajeel and Wendy, on the other hand, seemed to be having a much more heated discussion. Finally, Gajeel walked off in a huff and Wendy came over to him.  
  
"You can stay, but you'll need to stay in Natsu's room," Wendy informed him of their decision. "Everywhere else is off limits."  
  
Erza turned towards Gray, "You can tell Natsu that if he can go out with his injury, he can come to work tomorrow too. I would like to have a chat with him in the morning."  
  
Wendy returned after walking Erza out of the cave. "I know Gajeel can seem unfriendly, but he isn't really. Our dragons are our parents, and we're all very protective of them. He just doesn't want to hand you any information that might help you hurt them later."  
  
"It's alright, I understand." Gray couldn't really blame them, he'd certainly gone out of his way to make his feelings known. "Thank you for letting me stay."  
  
Wendy showed him where their facilities were and walked him back to Natsu's room before bidding him good night.  
  
Gray stared at the spot where he had left Natsu resting before Erza had forced him to attend that pointless meeting. He was immediately furious again. What was the moron thinking, going out like that? He was in no shape to put up any type of fight if he was attacked. Was Natsu trying to get himself killed? What could he possibly be doing that was so important he’d risk his life over it?  
  
Gray waited for hours for Natsu to return, but eventually, his eyelids became too heavy. He was exhausted, he'd been up since Natsu's call had woken him, and the heat of the cave had not helped matters much. 

Gray lay down in Natsu's sleep area which consisted of an enormous circular cushion that served as a mattress covered in smaller pillows and blankets. It was both bigger than Gray’s own bed and much cozier than he’d anticipated. He dozed off almost immediately.  
  
  
  
O-o  
  
When Natsu and Happy returned, they found Gray asleep in their room. Natsu silently pointed Happy to a perch where he could sleep if he were still afraid of Gray, and the dragon quickly flew up to it.  
  
All Natsu had wanted to do a moment ago was collapse on his bed and get some rest. He was in incredible agony, which he knew was well deserved for going out as he did. He'd not been expecting to find anyone in his room, least of all Gray. Yet here he was, and Natsu was astounded by the sight of his mate resting comfortably on his bed. Something they hadn’t shared since they were eight years old.  
  
"Are you going to stare at me some more, or are you coming to bed?" Gray asked sleepily.  
  
"I-- why are you here?" Natsu couldn't help but ask.  
  
"Why do you think? I was worried about your stupid ass," Gray muttered, "Bed now, talk tomorrow on the way to work."  
  
"Work? But I'm injured!" Natsu whined, he was in so much pain the idea of even getting up again was exhausting, let alone having to go to work.  
  
"Should’ve thought of that before you took off," Gray grumbled in a way that Natsu thought was very cute. This whole time Gray had kept his eyes stubbornly shut while speaking.  
  
"How did you know I was staring?" Natsu asked as he undressed down to his boxers and climbed into his bed. He kept his voice hushed so as not to wake any of the others. Natsu lay on his side behind Gray as any other position would have been too painful.  
  
"What else would you have been doing standing there?" Gray mumbled, already almost back asleep.  
  
They heard a rustle in the room and looked to see Wendy coming in, dressed in her pajamas.  
  
"Wendy, what are you doing up?" Natsu asked with concern.  
  
"I waited up for you so I could heal you some more." Wendy explained, "I figured you'd be in a lot of pain."  
  
"You're the best!," Natsu exclaimed gratefully, as he lay on his stomach to give her access to his aching back.  
  
"You made them worse," Wendy chastised as she examined the once again open burns across his back, "You shouldn't have gone out on your own."  
  
"I didn't," Natsu said honestly, "Happy went with me."  
  
"Who?" Wendy looked at him in confusion as she continued to use her magic to heal him.  
  
"Happy, he's the baby dragon we rescued," Natsu told her with a smile, "He's going to live with us now." Natsu pointed up, and Wendy beamed when she saw Happy perching up there.  
  
"Of course he is," Gray groaned into his pillow, "Are you telling me you adopted a dragon?"  
  
"He's all alone, and you have to be nicer to him, “ Natsu said sternly, “He’s frightened of you.”  
  
“I don’t _have_ to do anything,” Gray replied, his voice dripping with sleep, “I’m too tired to argue now. We have a lot to discuss tomorrow, and I’m not letting you get out of it this time.”  
  
Natsu didn't like the sound of that, but he was grateful that Gray wasn't going to try to force a serious conversation now.  
  
“All right,” Natsu agreed wearily. Thanks to Wendy’s healing magic, he already felt a lot better than when he’d arrived. Natsu desperately wanted to sleep, he’d pushed himself too hard. He could worry about the rest tomorrow. When Wendy was done, Natsu thanked her and once again placed himself behind Gray.  
  
"This brings back memories, huh?” Gray mumbled sleepily when Natsu settled into the bed. “You know, when you first told me you lived in a cave, I didn't really believe you."  
  
Natsu smiled to himself, remembering how much he’d enjoyed sharing a bedroll with Gray, it had been the first intimate physical contact he’d had with another human. He felt himself drift off, the comforting smell of his mate lulling him to sleep.  
  
"Makes me wonder what other things you told me were true, Dragon Boy," Gray chuckled as if he’d told a great joke. “Good night.”  
  
“Night, Ice Block,” Natsu replied, managing to keep his voice even, although his heart was racing at those words. It was not something he particularly wanted Gray to be thinking about.  
  
Gray shifted his body closer to Natsu, and the fire mage wrapped his arm loosely around Gray's middle, his heart fluttering when the ice mage didn't protest. 

  
Natsu couldn’t ignore the anxiety Gray's last words had given him. Still, Gray hadn't made a fuss about Happy. That was more than Natsu had expected. He surrendered to an uneasy sleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Next chapter things will come full circle! Next update will be on July 20... 
> 
> Once again, Gratsu Week 2019 has announced and if you would like to participate in this year's event you can find more information on their [AO3 collection](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Gratsu_Week_2019).
> 
> Fuckyeahgratsu has also announced our summer event Gratsu Bingo you might have already seen some of the entries on the Natsu Dragneel/Gray Fullbuster tag! You can find more information as well as a link to a downloadable game board on our [Gratsu Bingo 2019](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Gratsu_Bingo_2019) event collection.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gratsubingo 2019  
> Prompt: Trust

Chapter 12  
  
_There was smoke everywhere, making it hard to see or make out any smell outside of sulfur. Natsu noticed a wall of fire to the left which could only belong to Atlas._

_He was roaring, trying desperately to get at something just outside of Natsu’s view. There were bursts of spells in the air. Different kinds of magic clashing against each other in a cacophony of sound and light that drowned out every other noise._

_Natsu's attention was soon drawn to the ground, where blood was splattered everywhere, making it seem like the earth itself was bleeding out._

_He felt a massive surge of magical power and swiftly searched for its source. It seemed to be coming from a man who stood alone on the field, eyes glued to the battle in the sky. Natsu observed him closely, sensing his importance._

_The man had long blue hair, his arms riddled with markings of the same color. Natsu could feel the aura of malevolence that surrounded him as he began to laugh in a way that made Natsu's skin crawl._

_It was at that moment Natsu saw his father. Igneel looked tired and bruised, there were scars on his body where previously there had been none. He challenged the man on the field with a thunderous roar, but it sounded less confident than Natsu remembered, it lacked Igneel’s usual spirit._

_Everything slowed down, and Natsu could only watch with a growing sense of dread as the man transformed into a dragon. A black dragon, covered in the blue markings of the man's skin._

_But how could that be? There was someone else like him? Natsu had always been told he was the only one. The black dragon zoomed towards his father, and Natsu could do nothing but observe helplessly._

_"IGNEEL! IGNEEL, NO! " Natsu could hear the desperate plea in Atlas' roar, and he forced himself to check on his uncle._

_The wall of hellfire had disappeared to reveal the rest of his family. Metalicana, Grandine, Weisslogia, and Skiadrum looked exhausted and barely able to keep themselves in the air. Atlas left them behind as he flew towards his brother, his hellfire blazing around him, Natsu had never seen him act so recklessly, and it only fueled his despair ..._

Gray startled awake, his magic already flaring as it fought against the oppressive heat Natsu was exuding. He was thrashing about on the bed, moaning unintelligibly. 

"IGNEEL, NO!" Natsu suddenly shrieked in his sleep, tears streaming down his face, "Atlas, please hurry!" 

"Natsu?" Gray tried shaking the fire mage, hissing as his fingers were instantly burned. 

He covered himself in a layer of frost and continued to try to rouse his friend. "Natsu, wake up!" 

Gray had to scamper away as Natsu's body covered itself in flames hotter than any Gray had ever felt before. The bed and all its coverings immediately disintegrated into a small cloud of ash. 

Wendy and Sting ran into the room, a groggy looking Gajeel and Rogue lagging behind. 

"What's going on?" 

"He's having some kind of nightmare!" Gray yelled in alarm, having no idea what to do. He'd never seen Natsu like this, and his desperate screams were tearing at him. 

The dragon slayers all tried to get close enough to Natsu to attempt to wake him, but Natsu's infernal flames made it impossible. He continued to thrash and scream out Igneel's name, getting louder and louder as desperation took over. 

All the dragon slayers looked spooked, none of them knew what to do either. "Use your bond," Wendy suggested unsurely. 

"My bond?" Gray peered at Wendy helplessly, "What?!" 

He had no idea what she was talking about. 

"You told Gajeel you heard Natsu calling you in your mind," Wendy reminded him, "We all saw you had some sort of conversation with him when Happy brought him back. He was unconscious, Gray. You could still talk to him because the two of you are bonded. Use that bond to break through to him." 

Gray shook his head in confusion, Natsu was the one who usually initiated whatever this was. Always had been, since the first time. The few times he'd managed it had all been flukes. He'd thought Natsu was awake when he'd tried, he'd even tried again later and gotten no response. 

"Just try, Gray," Wendy pleaded, "Look at him, he's hurting." 

Gray closed his eyes and thought as hard as he could, pouring all of his concern into it. 

_Natsu? Natsu you need to wake up._

Natsu remained silent, but Gray was suddenly bombarded with a slew of feelings he couldn't interpret. There were far too many, and they were all muddled together. Still, he kept trying, desperate to get through to Natsu, not even noticing his own tears. 

_NATSU!_  
  
Gray grunted in frustration, this wasn't getting them anywhere. He was about to turn to Wendy when he felt a sort of pull in his mind, and then he heard Natsu, his voice faint but there.  
  
_Gray?_

_Yeah, it's me. You need to wake up, Natsu._

_Our dragons are in trouble! Igneel, he's… he's…_

_It's not real Natsu, whatever you're seeing, it's not real. It's just a nightmare. You need to wake up._

_But he needs me…_  


Gray put as much command as he was able into his thought. 

_NATSU DRAGNEEL, WAKE UP NOW!_

Gray could feel their connection ebbing away, but he began to see results. Natsu stopped yelling, and the flames that surrounded him wavered until they disappeared. A few minutes later, his eyes blinked opened and he sat up, his breath coming in rapid gasps. Natsu covered his eyes with his arm and dissolved into sobs. 

The dragon slayers all stood paralyzed, they'd never seen Natsu cry. Not when they were younger, not when Igneel left. They all looked at each other, not quite knowing what to do. 

Gray was the only one to move. Right before everything had gone to hell, Natsu had woken him out of a horrible nightmare. He'd sat behind Gray and held him tightly. Even when Gray had tried to fight him off, Natsu had stubbornly held on, and that had been precisely what Gray had needed. 

Gray sat behind Natsu now and pulled him into a tight embrace, ignoring the charred remains of the bed they had been sharing, some of which had gotten into the still healing burns on Natsu's back. Natsu didn't struggle, he just howled louder. Gray tried to comfort Natsu, he shushed him and made soothing noises, but mostly he just let him cry. 

He lost track of the other people in the room as he focused solely on Natsu. What Gray had felt when they were connected, it was a pain so raw it had overwhelmed him. He might not have understood all the layers, but he didn't have to. It quashed all of his earlier anger and made him realize for the first time that Natsu was barely holding it together. He'd been putting on a show for them for months, maybe even longer. 

When Natsu finally stopped crying, Gray let go of him, taking a better look at Natsu's back. He winced and looked for Wendy, who was sitting in a corner. All the other dragon slayers had left the room. Wendy looked shaken by Natsu's outburst, but she came over. 

"We need to get him cleaned up before I can heal him," Wendy explained, reaching out to Natsu and gently shaking his shoulder, "Natsu, can you go in the bath?" 

Natsu nodded but made no effort to move, so Gray stood up and pulled Natsu along with him, following Wendy through the maze-like cave until they reached a hot spring. She left them alone and waited outside. 

"You guys have your own hot spring?" Gray looked around him in amazement. 

Natsu nodded listlessly. Gray found some bathing supplies and gently urged Natsu into the water. 

"Do you want to talk about it?" Gray asked softly. 

Natsu shook his head, looking almost like a child as the tears once again welled in his eyes. Gray grabbed a washcloth and used it to wash Natsu's back, making sure to get all the char out of his wounds in as gentle a manner as possible. Natsu gave no indication he even felt it. 

"It's okay, we don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," Gray assured him, "You gave us quite a scare, though." 

"I'm sorry," Natsu bowed his head, refusing to meet Gray's eyes. 

"Don't worry about it. Do you mind if I join you?" Gray waited for Natsu to respond in the affirmative before wading in to remove all the dirt from his own skin. The water was much warmer than he liked so he quickly got out and Natsu followed behind him. 

Wendy led them back to Natsu's room, observing the lack of response with concern. She let Natsu enter by himself, giving him privacy to get dressed. 

Wendy handed Gray a change of clothes that he recognized with dismay as belonging to Sting. He put them on without comment, knowing they'd be off soon enough anyway. 

"Did he say anything to you?" Wendy asked once he was dressed. 

"Just that he was sorry for worrying us." 

Wendy and Gray shared a concerned glance before entering the room. They were greeted by the sight of Natsu, dressed in pajama pants, cuddling up to Happy. The wyrmling had wrapped his wings around Natsu and was making purring noises that seemed to relax the dragon slayer. 

Happy tensed the moment he saw Gray, fixing his eyes on the ice mage, and seeming ready to fly away. Gray managed to fight off his initial instincts, his concern for Natsu overriding his hatred for the moment. 

He put his hands up in front of his body and slowly backed out of the room, understanding that Happy was doing a better job of comforting Natsu than he'd been able to. 

It made sense, the dream seemed to have something to do with their dragons, and Happy was the closest Natsu had to his two missing red dragons. 

In a way, Gray was relieved. It gave him time to think about how he wanted to handle the situation. There were so many answers he wanted from Natsu, but not at the price of spooking him. Natsu was stressed enough as it was. 

Gray made his way to the entrance of the cave, enjoying some cold air for the first time in hours. The more Gray thought about it, the more he thought Erza was probably right in her assumptions. 

Natsu was actively searching for any hostile dragons close enough to be a threat to the village, taking care of them before they had a chance to cause any damage. It was the only thing that made any sense to Gray, and it terrified him. 

He'd watched as a dragon had destroyed his entire village in mere minutes. He realized Natsu had a particular type of magic that let him fight dragons, but he also remembered how big Deliora had been and he just couldn't believe that Natsu could defeat something like that on his own, even with his magic. He didn't want to lose another person he loved to those beasts. 

Gray knew he could continue to pressure Natsu, demand answers the dragon slayer was not willing to give, but all it would really accomplish would be to create a wedge between them. One from which they might never recover. 

As much as he hated it, Gray had to accept that Natsu needed to put his life in danger to protect the town until the war was over, or their dragons returned. 

Nothing Gray felt for Natsu would change that. Nor should it, Gray was being selfish, and he knew it. There were bigger things at stake here than his feelings. The attack already proved that what Natsu was doing was important. It had undoubtedly saved countless lives. 

He groaned in defeat. There really was only one choice, he had to put his trust in Natsu and support him. Anything else would just push him away, and that possibility was not one Gray was ready for. 

Wendy came looking for him. "I was able to heal him completely this time, his burns are finally gone." 

She gazed at him proudly, "What you did back there, I know that was hard for you, but it was what he needed. He's doing better now, you can go see him if you want." 

"Wendy, that bond, what does it mean?" 

"I think that's a question you should ask Natsu, the two of you have a lot to discuss." Wendy patted him on the shoulder before leading him back to Natsu's room. Wendy bid Natsu good night, taking Happy with her, and leaving a very nervous looking Natsu alone with Gray. 

Natsu took one look at Gray's outfit and started to snicker. 

"Oh, shut up. It's not like I picked it." Gray grumbled in annoyance. 

"Can you please take off that crop top at least? I can't take you seriously when you look like that." Natsu tried to contain his laughter but failed miserably. 

Gray had to admit he would gladly wear the outfit for a week if it could get Natsu to laugh like that. It had been too long since Gray had heard it. 

"I suppose you weren't expecting any of this when you stayed over, huh?" Natsu chuckled nervously. 

"A lot of things have happened that I wasn't expecting," Gray agreed, "But that's not important now. Are you feeling better?" 

"Yeah, it was just a very vivid dream..." Natsu ran his fingers through his hair, "Thanks for leading me out of it." 

" _How_ did I do that, Natsu?" Gray looked into Natsu's eyes, expecting to see them closed off, but they had never seemed more earnest. "What is this bond that Wendy was talking about?" 

"I was going to tell you eventually, it's just always so complicated between us, " Natsu sighed, unsure of how much to explain. 

"We've had a connection to each other, a soulbond, since we first met in the woods all those years ago. It's how I was able to send you that message, and how you were able to reach out to me," Natsu smiled timidly at Gray, "It's also how I knew you would turn up here someday and despite how badly I screwed up on that first day, I really am glad you're here." 

"I'm so sorry for all the trouble I caused you today," Natsu said honestly, "I never should've gotten hurt, I got careless cause I was near home." 

"Can you tell me what attacked you?" Gray tried very hard not to make it sound like a demand, "Those were pretty nasty ice burns." 

Natsu gazed at Gray for a few minutes, his thoughts a jumble of wants and needs and fears. "I want to tell you, but I know how you're going to react." 

"It was a dragon, wasn't it?" Gray felt the fear flood his system to the point that he began to shake as he realized that his worst nightmare had almost become a reality. "Natsu, please tell me the truth, I want you to trust me." 

"Don't you think I want to trust you? This dragon thing with you, it's the only thing keeping me from...," Natsu stopped himself as he realized what he'd almost said. 

"From what?" Gray did push this time, he was tired of all the hiding. All he wanted was for them to be together. With the ever-present threat of the war reaching Talos, Gray didn't want to waste any more time. 

"From telling me how you feel about me? Do you really think I don't already know? Don't you think I feel the same way?" 

"Did you know that you call me every time you fall asleep in the field?" Gray caught Natsu's gaze and refused to let go of it, wanting Natsu to see him, to hear what he had to say and for once to take him seriously. 

"You call me and then when you wake up, you don't even know why I'm there. How do you think that makes me feel? What should I think when everything you say or do when you're awake pushes me away?" 

"I thought that might be happening," Natsu closed his eyes in frustration and to give himself some time to think. This conversation had taken a decidedly different turn from what he'd intended. He counted to five and opened his eyes again only to find Gray's midnight blue eyes still boring into him. 

"It's the bond, it knows what I want. I can't seem to keep control over it when I'm asleep." 

"What am I supposed to do with that?" Gray demanded angrily, "Why are you trying to control it at all?" 

All this time he'd thought Natsu was just not aware of his feelings, to find out that he not only knew about them but was holding them back pissed Gray off. 

He was starting to let his anger take over, and that was dangerous, he needed to get himself under control before he said something he'd regret. 

"If you want me Natsu, I'm right here. I always have been." Gray softened his tone as much as he could, but he knew he still sounded angry. 

"Of course I want you, you jackass. I always have," Natsu yelled, seeming angrier than Gray had ever seen him, "But what the hell am I supposed to do when you hate everything I am?" 

"What are you talking about, Natsu?" 

"I was raised by dragons, Gray, those same creatures that you would destroy. They're all I know." 

"Natsu, I--" 

"Don't even bother to deny it, we both know it would be a lie." Natsu's anger had somehow evaporated, leaving a deep sorrow in its wake, "Don't you see how futile this is?" Natsu entreated Gray to understand. 

"It's not that easy for me, Natsu. It's not a switch I can just turn off. A dragon destroyed everything I knew and loved. It was brutal and cruel, and I was there. I saw it, and I can never forget it. I still have nightmares about it." 

Gray tried his best to explain, and in baring his despair, he spoke the most honest words he'd ever uttered to Natsu or anyone else. "Ever since that day, I've lived in dread of the moment when it will happen again." 

"But I'm also starting to see that there are some differences. I hear the dragon slayers talking about their dragons with love and affection. I've seen they can also care for humans like Happy just did for you." 

" I'm trying, Natsu," Gray pleaded, "Doesn't that count for anything?" 

They stared at each other in silence, trying to figure out where to go from there. Things had been said that could not be forgotten. Truths had been confessed, and feelings had been hurt. 

"A renegade dragon slayer coming after Igneel, and Atlas not being able to get to him in time." Natsu shared quietly, shattering the silence. 

"What?" Gray had no idea what Natsu was talking about. He would have been annoyed at what he felt was a blatant change of subject if it wasn't for the haunted look in Natsu's eyes. This was important to him. 

"That's my biggest fear, it's what my nightmare was about. You told me yours, I thought it only fair you knew mine," Natsu attempted to smile at Gray, but it was too much to ask. 

This seemingly endless night had been too much, and Natsu's every last nerve was frayed. He sat down in the place where his bed used to be. He'd have to replace it tomorrow. If Atlas were here, he'd just conjure him a new one while Igneel would make fun of him for incinerating yet another bed. Natsu could almost hear Igneel's deep rumbling laugh echoing in his room, and it hurt so much. 

He tried to focus on how annoying it would be to lug a mattress up the mountain and any other number of mundane things, trying to get back to some sense of normalcy, but it didn't work. He could still hear the laughter, but all he felt was vast loneliness, and Natsu was so tired of feeling lonely. Why was he doing this to himself? His love, his one desire was there with him. Gray wanted him, and Natsu was hurting him by denying him, denying _them_. 

His resolve weakened, he was tired of feeling empty, of fighting the inevitable. What was even the point? They were meant to be together, fate had already decreed it. 

Gray must have gone to the main room while Natsu sat thinking, for he returned carrying pillows and blankets. He set about making them a nest of sorts as Natsu watched. Gray looked calmer as he organized the space, walking over to Natsu and offering him his hand as soon as he was done. 

Natsu let himself be led to bed. He lay down, facing Gray. 

"Thank you for trusting me with your fear," Gray reached out with his thumb, caressing Natsu's cheek gently, "I know that wasn't easy for you." 

He looked at Gray gratefully. It felt so nice to be loved like this. He wanted nothing more than to love Gray, to share with him everything he was, but he still couldn't do that. 

Gray was right, he was trying to get past his prejudice. Maybe someday Gray could even come to accept the fact that Natsu was as much dragon as he was human. Until then, Natsu would just share all his humanity with the man he loved. 

Natsu reached out with his own thumb, imitating Gray's movements. He was rewarded with a smile that tore away at any last doubt Natsu might have had. "What you said earlier, it does count. It counts for a lot, Princess." 

He removed his thumb from Gray's cheek and placed his hand behind Gray's neck, gently tugging him forward. Natsu searched for the lips he'd wanted to kiss for so long. 

He wanted nothing more than to press them against his own. To claim the ice mage as his. Gray met him eagerly, and they finally shared their first kiss. It was awkward as neither of them was quite sure what to do, but Natsu still loved it, and he smiled as he felt a jolt of shared pleasure flood their bond. 

"I'm sorry I made you wait so long," Natsu whispered as he shifted to lay on his back, something he hadn't been able to do since the attack. Gray made himself comfortable, laying his head on Natsu's chest, and wrapping his body around the fire mage. Natsu immediately ran his fingers through Gray's hair, enjoying the feel of it on his skin. 

No more words were shared that night, neither wanting to ruin the moment. They were both emotionally drained and content to just lay in each other's arms. Tomorrow would come soon enough. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I hope you like this chapter. It may or may not be what you've been waiting for. ;)
> 
> I also finally got around to making a cover for this story thanks to the Gratsu Bingo, and I really like it. I think it's my favorite one I've done so far!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gratsu Bingo 2019  
> Prompt: Alarm

Chapter 13

Natsu woke up to find he'd tangled his limbs with Gray's as they slept, just as they had as children. This time, however, he didn't have to be afraid of the other's reaction. They were both exactly where they wanted to be. 

Natsu's smile was full of affection. Even though it had taken them years, they'd finally come full circle. He watched over Gray as he slept, loving how his nose wrinkled as he dreamed. It was so peaceful and cute, and Natsu knew he could spend hours watching Gray like this and never grow tired of it. 

He carefully moved some hair out of Gray's face, and the ice mage began to stir. His eyes twitched behind his eyelids, and soon, they were blinking awake. 

"Morning," Gray said groggily, eyes still heavy with sleep. He studied how their bodies were connected, and instead of pulling away, he snuggled closer and closed his eyes again. 

"Morning, Droopy Eyes," Natsu greeted fondly, "Shouldn't we be getting up?" 

Even though he'd rather do anything but go to work, he remembered Gray mentioning Erza had demanded he go. 

"Uh-uh, I want to enjoy this, Erza's going to be pissed at us no matter what. We might as well at least deserve it." Gray squinched his eyes stubbornly shut. 

"I can't argue with that," Natsu grinned as he slowly turned his body to face his boyfriend. 

The movement caused Gray to open his eyes reluctantly. He gazed at Natsu's face, eyes moving slowly down until they came to rest on his boyfriend's luscious lips. Natsu licked them nervously, and Gray wasted no time, leaning in for a kiss. They spent the next ten minutes experimenting and finding what they liked best. 

Natsu was enthralled, he really liked this tingly warmth that coursed through his body, it burned, but it was so enjoyable. Much different from any heat he'd ever experienced through his magic. 

A strange yet familiar scent wafted into his nose, and he stiffened prompting Gray to stop what he was doing and glance at him in confusion. 

"So, you two dumbasses finally got your act together," a sardonic voice came from the entrance of Natsu's room. "About damn time." 

Gray groaned as he recognized it but made no move to cover himself. "Lyon, what are you doing here?" 

"Erza sent me to get you when you didn't show up for your shift," Lyon informed his brother, "She's not happy with either of you." 

"Well, message received, you can go now," Gray attempted to get rid of his brother so he could go back to the new thrill of making out with Natsu. 

"No can do little brother. She asked me to escort you back, and I'd rather not piss her off." 

"Yep, Lyon's already whipped, and he's not even dating her," Gray grinned at Natsu who chuckled. 

"Oh please, she's got all of you whipped," Gajeel entered Natsu's room as well, carrying a bag of food from the local bakery, "Here you go, losers. Don't get used to it," he said gruffly. 

"Jeel, I didn't know you cared," Natsu grinned at the dragon slayer. 

"I don't, I was up early and happened to remember you didn't eat anything yesterday," Gajeel muttered, "Just… don't scare Wendy like that again." 

"I won't," Natsu promised as he got up and gave the burly slayer a hug, which was returned although somewhat reluctantly. 

"Now hurry up, Red wants to have a strategy meeting." 

"Can you keep this to yourselves for now?" Natsu asked Lyon and Gajeel, "We haven't had a chance to discuss how public we want to be." 

Both guards agreed, even though Lyon stared at Natsu warily. Gajeel, however, pointed out that since he didn't care anyway, it wouldn't be a problem. 

Natsu and Gray got ready quickly, and Gray did his best to ignore Lyon's snickers at seeing him wearing Sting's clothes as they headed out with the other two guards. 

They wolfed down the food Gajeel had brought them as they walked behind Lyon and Gajeel, all four of them bickering the whole way down. 

O-o 

Natsu and Gray entered Erza's office. Natsu had turned quiet as soon as they'd reached the field, not looking forward to the interrogation he was sure was in his future. Something else had been bothering him, and he didn't quite know what he should do about it. 

"Natsu," Erza greeted him coolly as she gave him a once over, "I trust you're feeling better?" 

Natsu ran his fingers through his hair nervously. "Yeah, Wendy was able to heal me completely." 

"Can you go get the others?" Erza requested, fixing her gaze on Gray, who left to search for the other guards. 

Erza waited until Gray was out of earshot before asking the one question that had kept her up most of the previous night. "Was it a dragon attack?" 

Natsu nodded, "I was attacked by a Silver Dragon, he caught me by surprise on my way home." 

Erza stared at him in horror, remembering how serious his injuries had been, while also thinking about what could have happened if Natsu hadn't encountered the dragon first. 

"How are you holding up?" Erza asked worriedly, "Wendy mentioned you had some sort of incident last night?" 

"I had a pretty bad nightmare," Natsu admitted and then muttered, "At least I hope that's what it was." 

Erza narrowed her eyes at his words but decided to wait until the others arrived. From what Wendy had told her, it had sounded like Natsu hadn't given them any details. 

Erza cursed under her breath but didn't ask any more questions. She paced around her office, trying to determine what the dragon attack implied for the safety of the village. 

One by one, all the guards arrived and took a seat. Lyon closed the door behind Gray, who was the last to enter, taking his place next to Natsu. Sting and Wendy had already begun their shift and would have to be updated later. 

"Can you finally tell us what you've been doing?" Erza asked Natsu, not really expecting him to agree. 

That silver dragon had been either desperate or aggressive enough to ignore his claim, others might soon follow. For the safety of Talos, Natsu would have to put all his cards on the table, save one. 

"I've been going out every night looking for evidence of any dragons in the area. I've only encountered a few, and I was able to scare them away," Natsu avoided Gray's eyes as he knew the ice mage would be freaking out right about then, but Natsu couldn't afford to keep them in the dark any longer. 

"Dragons work off scent, they usually won't encroach on another dragon's territory, so every night I mark the territory that Atlas had claimed as his in the hopes that it would scare others away. I've actually expanded it quite a bit since the refugees arrived." He added proudly. 

"I was returning home when a silver dragon attacked me from behind. It was able to paralyze me with a spell before he attacked with his ice, but I was able to injure him and get away." Natsu explained, "He shouldn't return, but others might." 

"Paralyzed you with a spell?" Rogue asked, and Natsu could see the tension in his friend's shoulders. Even though all the dragon slayers had learned and practiced with their dragons, like Natsu, they'd never been in a real fight. He could only hope that their initial reaction was better than his had been. Rogue's shadows would probably work to his advantage. He looked over at Gajeel and to his surprise, the Iron Dragon Slayer looked calm, if anything his features looked more determined than ever. 

"I don't understand any of this," Erza complained, "How are you even able to mark like a dragon?" 

"Atlas taught me a spell, it can only be cast by a fire dragon or a fire dragon slayer, it lets me do the marking and move swiftly," Natsu improvised quickly, "That's why no one else could help me. " 

"That's changed though, Happy went out on patrol with me last night, and he's willing to continue helping, I just have to teach him what's needed." 

"Who's Happy?' Erza asked in confusion. 

"Happy is the red dragon Sting, Lyon and I attacked," Gray answered dully. 

"He's also the one who brought Natsu to us after he was injured," Rogue added, keeping his eyes on Natsu as he seemed to be thinking about something. 

"I was lucky he found me," Natsu said with sincerity, "There's no way I would have been able to make it back home on my own." 

Natsu could feel Gray's distress at his words through their bond and cursed himself for sharing that. 

"So we have one dragon on our side, are there any others?" Erza asked eyeing the dragon slayers hopefully. 

The three dragon slayers all shook their heads, as far as they knew all the other dragons had already left to fight. 

"There's one more thing, and I hesitate to mention it, but I feel like I need to," Natsu had thought about this all the way down. Once he'd calmed down, he'd realized there was something about that dream that troubled him. 

It had felt like Atlas had been trying to communicate with him. Natsu wasn't sure if that was likely, but he knew that Atlas had a lot of magic at his disposal, so it was at the very least possible, and it had felt so real. 

"It's about my dream. It was about the war, there was a dragon slayer, a renegade one, and he was going after our parents. Atlas was protecting Metalicana, Grandine, Weisslogia, and Skiadrum who looked to be already injured, but the dragon slayer was going after Igneel. Atlas was trying to get to him when I woke up." 

Natsu couldn't look at any of the dragon slayers, he already knew what he would see. 

"It was just a dream, Natsu, "Rogue reminded him stiffly, "It wasn't real." 

Natsu could hear the cautious hope in his friend's voice, and he hoped with all his might that Rogue was right, that he was just overreacting to a very vivid dream, but in his heart, he knew differently. He wanted nothing more than to take off and find them, but he'd made a promise to his father, and he intended to keep it. 

"You mentioned renegade dragon slayers last night too," Gray stated, sounding confused, "What are they?" 

"Igneel told me about them before he left. Renegade is the name given to dragon slayers that betray the dragons after receiving their magic. They kill all dragons, regardless of what side they're on and they use their blood to make themselves more powerful." 

"Irene had identified several, and Igneel and the others went to try to take them out once and for all," Erza gasped at the mention of her mother. 

"Why didn't you tell us any of this before?" Gajeel glared at him, his red eyes glowing dangerously. 

"I didn't want to worry you," Natsu had often thought about telling them, but he'd decided it wouldn't help anything, worse they might begin to worry that it could happen to them as well. Atlas and Igneel had assured him that wasn't likely so he'd tried to protect his friends as best he could. 

"Did you see my mother in your dream?" Erza demanded while staring at Natsu, wanting to make sure he wasn't keeping anything from her. 

"I'm sorry, Erza. I didn't," Natsu said honestly, "That doesn't mean anything though, she could have been somewhere else. I could also be completely wrong about all this." 

Erza took a moment to digest the information, "It's official then. We need to prepare for the worst." 

"I'm sorry, Lyon," Erza announced, "We'll have to call off the festival," She smiled at the ice mage briefly, and wanting to soften the blow she added, "Perhaps soon, we can plan for a victory one." 

She remained quiet for a few minutes staring at all of them thoughtfully before barking orders out. 

"Lyon and Gray, I want you to go to the refugee camps and let them know we're looking for recruits. If they don't have magic, I want you to train them in hand to hand. If they do send them to Sting to train. I'll talk to him as soon as he returns. I'm counting on the three of you to whip our new recruits into shape." 

Both ice mages nodded in agreement, it had been a while since they'd been assigned to work together. Gray looked at Natsu wistfully, all hopes of stolen moments shattered, but he knew what he and Lyon would be doing was important. 

"I'll have Wendy and the healer train some others, it will be crucial to have more healers on hand." 

"Natsu, you're off regular rotation. You will focus exclusively on your patrols," Erza barked, "I want you to teach this Happy what he needs to know, and I want someone to go with you as a backup. No more surprise attacks." 

"Gajeel, I want you to go with N-" Erza didn't even get a chance to finish her order. 

"Rogue, I'll take Rogue." Natsu quickly interrupted Erza before she could assign Gajeel the job of being his backup. Natsu didn't particularly relish the idea of having anyone with him but considering what they would discover he had to pick the most level headed of the male dragon slayers and that was Rogue. Natsu was a bit concerned about his entanglement with Sting, but he hoped that if he explained the situation, Rogue would agree not to share his secret. 

Rogue raised an eyebrow at him, Natsu knew that it would seem an unusual choice for him to make for something like this. Although they were friends, he and Rogue had never been particularly close. 

Erza seemed surprised as well but shrugged it off, "Gajeel, you and I will analyze the town's defenses and find ways to improve them. We will also come up with an evacuation plan should it be needed." 

Gajeel nodded, but his eyes never left Natsu, who steadfastly refused to meet his gaze. The meeting was adjourned, and everyone left Erza's office. 

Natsu and Rogue were headed home when Natsu felt Gray tug his arm. He sent Rogue ahead telling him he'd catch up with him in a few minutes. 

"Don't do anything stupid," Gray looked worried, and Natsu hated that he was the reason for it. 

"Hey, relax. I've done this every day for a long time now." He smiled in a way that he hoped was reassuring, "I always come back." 

"Promise me." 

"You know I can't do that," Natsu reasoned, "I _can_ promise you this. If it's within my power to do so, I will always come back to you. Besides, there are a lot of firsts in our future, I wouldn't want to miss any of them." Natsu winked and smirked at the blush that Gray wasn't able to hide. 

" _I_ was thinking about hand-holding, you Pervy Popsicle," Natsu teased, "What were _you_ thinking about?" 

"S-same," Gray replied unconvincingly. 

"You're a horrible liar, Snowflake," Natsu pressed his forehead to Gray's, "Meet me at the field later, we can hold hands and watch the sunset. Does that sound good?" 

When Gray nodded, Natsu gave him a quick kiss and ran off to catch up with Rogue. He had to figure out the best way to tell Rogue his secret and convince him not to tell anyone, especially Sting. 

O-o 

"So how big of an area are we talking about?" Rogue asked as they neared the cave. So far, they had stayed away from any weighted topics, but Natsu was well aware that he wouldn't be able to do that for much longer. 

He was terrified, he didn't think Rogue would run away from him, but it still frightened him to have anyone know what he was. 

"Hundreds of miles," Natsu replied honestly. 

"But how, how are you able to travel those distances in one night?" Rogue looked shocked, "What kind of spell did Atlas teach you?" 

"Look, Rogue, before I show you anything, I really need you to promise me that you won't tell anyone about this. Not even Sting." 

"Natsu, you're asking me to keep something from my mate. I'd never ask you to keep anything from Gray," Rogue watched Natsu's reaction closely and when one wasn't forthcoming pressed, "He _is_ your mate isn't he?" 

"Yeah, he is," Natsu agreed readily, "But this is something that he can't know, at least not yet." 

"I wouldn't be asking you if it weren't important," Natsu could see Rogue was curious, but he didn't want to do or say anything more until he could extract a promise. 

"I'll consider it, that's the best answer I can give you." 

Natsu looked at Rogue with frustration, maybe he'd made a mistake in picking him. Gajeel might have been the better choice, after all. 

"HAPPY?" Natsu yelled out, smiling as he heard the young dragon come flying out of his bedroom and land in the main room. 

"Naaatsuuuu!" Happy greeted the dragon slayer cheerfully. 

"This is Rogue," Natsu introduced the Shadow Dragon Slayer to the wyrmling, "He will be coming on patrols with us." 

"Pleased to meet you, son of Skiadrum," Happy attempted to bow, but he was too excited at the prospect of going out again to be able to manage it properly. 

Rogue chuckled at the dragon's eagerness, liking him right away. "The pleasure is all mine." He bowed to the dragon." You may call me Rogue." 

Natsu led them to the rear entrance of the cave and climbed on Happy, he motioned for Rogue to climb on behind him and hold on. "We'll just fly around and keep an eye out to start with. I want to see what it looks like in the daytime." 

Happy took off, and Natsu explained to the two of them in great detail the things that he regularly kept an eye out for. He was enjoying riding Happy, it had been a while since he'd ridden any dragon. 

Natsu preferred flying himself, but as a child, he'd loved riding Igneel, and when riding Atlas, there was always a snack, much to his uncle's dismay. 

He felt a sharp pain across his chest as he once again thought about his family. Were his father and uncle okay? Had it all just been a very realistic dream prompted by his attack? Natsu had no way of knowing. 

They were almost at the edge of his territory when Rogue finally spoke. He had been quiet for most of the ride, and Natsu's nerves had finally settled. 

"Do you really think Skiadrum's in trouble?" Rogue asked, his grip on Natsu tightening. 

Natsu could still see Igneel and feel the terror Atlas had experienced as the renegade dragon slayer had transformed and come straight at his brother, could see the battered bodies of the other four dragons he had come to know as family. He shuddered and tried to clear his mind of the image. 

"I really don't know what to think anymore, all I know is it felt real," Natsu replied honestly. 

"They've been gone for so long, sometimes I think they're never coming back." Rogue said in his matter of fact tone, "I'm worried Natsu, we've never really fought a dragon. What if we're not strong enough and everyone dies because of it?" 

"You can't do any worse than I did," Natsu assured him, "When that dragon paralyzed me, I panicked. I just froze and waited for it to finish me off. Then I heard Igneel's voice urging me to keep my head," Natsu frowned, still disappointed in himself. "Even when he's not here he's still saving my ass." 

"I guess none of us will know how we'll react until it happens, but I think you'll do better than you think," Natsu encouraged his friend, "We are our parents' children after all, and they trained us for this. When the time comes, I think we'll be fine." 

Rogue stared at him for a bit and then gave him a small nod, accepting Natsu's words. "Is it time for you to start marking yet?" 

Right. Natsu took a deep breath and braced himself for what was coming. "Happy can you set us down for a moment?" 

Happy found an open field to land on and touched down gently. Natsu climbed down and stretched his limbs a bit before calling out to his magic. He turned towards Rogue and before he had a chance to chicken out transformed into his dragon form. 

Natsu faced Rogue silently, wings stretched out behind him, letting his friend see him for who he was. Rogue climbed down from Happy and stared at him open-mouthed, taking in the red scales that covered most of his body, and the lighter colored skin that highlighted the tight muscles of his chest and underbelly. 

Natsu turned around, showing the black spikes that ran down his back to the tip of his tail. He swished it, and Rogue's eyes were immediately drawn to it. Natsu had seen himself reflected in the water as he flew over it and he knew that he looked like a smaller version of Igneel, down to the horn on his snout. The only real difference was his eyes, where Igneel's were yellow, Natsu's remained a bright green. He waited patiently for some sort of response, somehow sensing that if he spoke, it might be too much for Rogue to handle. 

"Natsu?" Rogue finally blurted out, "Is that really you?" 

‘Yeah, it's me," Natsu replied, his voice sounding deeper in this much more massive body. 

"You look like Igneel!" Rogue exclaimed. To Natsu's surprise, Rogue came over and explored his face with his fingers before backing away, face red with mortification. 

"Rogue?" 

"I'm sorry, I guess I miss the dragons more than I thought," Rogue looked sheepish, but he quickly went back to evaluating Natsu's transformation, "So Atlas taught you a spell that turns you into a dragon, allowing you to mark his territory?" 

Rogue was still watching him, awaiting his response and Natsu felt the weight of that gaze as he tried to decide how to answer. He hadn't given any thought to his earlier words in Erza's office, but he now realized they could be interpreted in a way that explained his transformation. 

This was the moment to come clean and tell the truth. Finally, tell someone what he really was and hope they would accept him, but he wasn't ready. The promise he'd made to Igneel all those years ago still weighed heavily on him, and he was just too scared of another reaction like Gray's when they'd been young. 

"Yes?" Natsu responded, taking the easy way out. He was disappointed in himself. It didn't matter that he was now able to control his transformations. That he currently had the enormous body of a young dragon, or that he was capable of taking out multiple foes on his own. Inside he was still that same child who had been brutally rejected by the one he loved most. 

Even though Natsu had stated it as a question, Rogue accepted it as fact, the variation in his dragon voice hiding the uncertainty in his answer. 

"I can understand why you wouldn't want Gray to know. That would be very traumatic for him." Rogue remained quiet for what felt like an age before finally adding, "As for Sting, there's no way he could keep this to himself if he knew, not to mention he'd ask for rides constantly." 

Natsu snorted, Sting would definitely be excited by this development. He was only one level below Natsu in regards to his love for anything dragon-related. He'd probably nag him incessantly to teach him the "spell." 

"Alright, you have my promise," Rogue said solemnly, "I will keep this between us, for now." 

"Thank you," Natsu said gratefully, "We should get started." 

Rogue climbed back atop Happy, and both dragons took off in the air, Natsu explaining to Happy how to secrete the substance in his saliva so that he could eventually mark as well. Rogue tried to hide his disgust as he mostly watched Natsu spit at things for the next four hours while keeping an eye out for any danger. 

o-o 

Gray and Lyon walked toward a refugee camp. Lyon had been giving Gray sidelong glances all morning but hadn't said anything, and it was driving Gray crazy. 

"If you have something to say, just say it," Gray finally snapped, not being able to take much more of the silence. 

"It's nothing, I'm just wondering why Natsu would want to keep your relationship a secret," Lyon looked straight ahead. 

"He never said he did, we just haven't had a chance to discuss anything yet. He's just being careful," Gray reasoned, "We've barely been together a day." 

"I suppose. I mean, don't get me wrong, I like Natsu well enough, it's just the dragonslayers are," Lyon searched for a word that explained what he was trying to say but came up empty, "different from us. I don't want to see you get hurt," He put his hands in his pockets. 

Gray laughed even though he was touched by the concern, "Are you trying to be the protective older brother?" 

"I'm doing no such thing," Lyon scowled, "I just know you've waited for this for a long time." 

Gray had indeed been waiting for this moment for a very long time, and although he was well aware that they still had a lot to work through, he refused to let that tarnish how he felt. Just thinking about the way Natsu's lips had pressed against his was enough to put a smile on his face. 

"Everything's going to be fine, Lyon," Gray assured his brother, "Now let's focus on our task." 

They'd stopped at the first camp on their list as they talked and now they were looking at it in surprise. Even though it was a sunny day just about everywhere else, there was a rain cloud hovering above the camp, completely enclosing the tented space in rain showers. 

"Get out! We don't want you here anymore, it hasn't stopped raining since you arrived!" 

Gray and Lyon shared a look and promptly ran into the camp to find the source. They followed the yelling, which was getting more and more abusive, and now they could also hear pitiful sobbing. 

"But Juvia has nowhere else to go, all the other camps have already sent her away. Please!" 

Gray tried to find who this Juvia was that they were fighting over, but all he could see was a young blue-haired girl crying while a much older man was throwing what seemed to be her possessions at her with others goading him on. 

"What is the meaning of this?" Gray demanded in outrage. He positioned himself in front of the crying girl getting himself drenched in the process. 

Muttering could be heard among the refugees, spreading as they got a good look at Gray and Lyon, "Look at their uniforms, they're from the Village Guard." 

The man who had been yelling at the girl stepped forward, "The Village Guard, thank goodness! You should arrest this girl." 

"Oh?" Lyon replied, his already squinty eyes narrowing further in interest, "On what charges exactly?" 

"I don't know! She's making it rain," The man explained," It never ends, everything we own is soaked through. We can never get warm, and people are starting to get sick. We took her in from another camp, but they didn't tell us this would happen." 

"I think we can help you with that," Lyon smiled, remaining polite although Gray could tell he was angry at their treatment of the girl, "The war is getting closer to our borders, and we have been sent here to recruit both magic users and fighters willing to fight for the town that has so graciously offered you a place to stay. We will train you, of course, and you will be paid for your trouble." 

While Lyon talked to the others, Gray turned around to get a good look at the girl. He offered her a friendly smile, trying to calm her down from the tears that seemed to have no end in sight. She studied him with big blue eyes. 

"Why did you stand up for Juvia?" The blue-haired girl asked through her tears. "No one has ever defended Juvia before." 

"Are _you_ Juvia?" Gray asked, keeping his tone of voice soothing. 

Juvia nodded, and Gray offered her his hand. When she took it, he pulled her to her feet. He called on his magic and created a large ice umbrella to keep them from getting pelted by the rain. She looked at his creation with surprise, her face turning crimson as she peered down at their joined hands. Gray noticed and immediately let go, not wanting to give her the wrong idea. 

"I don't like bullies," Gray shrugged his actions off as routine. "My name is Gray, I'm one of the Village Guards," he explained, "We're looking for magic users like you to join us." 

"You want Juvia to join you?" Juvia's face had once again become flushed, and Gray looked around for Lyon to help get him out of the somewhat uncomfortable situation, but his brother was still busy talking to the others. 

" _We'd_ like you to join the Guard yes, "He made sure to place special emphasis on the word we but it didn't seem to make any difference. "We could help you learn to control your magic so that this doesn't happen." Gray pointed to the rain that surrounded them. 

"Juvia would like that," Juvia attempted to smile, but it was clear she wasn't used to it, so while it was sweet, it also looked incredibly awkward. 

Gray tried to ignore the admiring looks Juvia gave him as he helped her grab her soggy possessions. He'd offered her to stay at the barracks knowing Erza probably wouldn't mind. 

The rain had stopped now that the rain woman appeared to calm down some and Gray dispelled the umbrella. Gray wasn't sure how to handle the situation, so he remained silent until Lyon finally returned with a small number of men and women, all of whom looked at Juvia with distaste. 

They decided to go try one more camp before heading back to headquarters to begin training. 

o-o 

Gray hurried towards the field, the sky had already begun to deepen, and he didn't want to be late. He was looking forward to seeing Natsu again, especially after having to spend most of the day with Juvia fawning over him. Sting's amused expression at his predicament when he'd dropped her off for training hadn't helped improve his mood any. 

He felt an urgent need to reassure himself that Natsu was his to love and touch, and last night hadn't all been some sort of dream. 

He'd expected Natsu to already be there, what he hadn't expected was to find a large blanket laid out on the ground covered with copious amounts of food and drink. A bouquet of red roses lay over a floor cushion. Torches were staked all around the area emitting a soft light as Natsu went around igniting them with his flames. To his surprise, Natsu looked nervous as he lit them all. 

"You got me flowers?" Gray blurted out feeling slightly amused but also touched by the gesture. Natsu startled and turned around, hand still alight. Gray's eyes widened as he saw what Natsu was wearing and immediately felt underdressed. He hadn't had time to change out of his uniform. 

"What are you even wearing?" Gray had never seen Natsu in anything but his guard gear, or his usual open black vest and white pants. He was wearing dark slacks with a belt and a light grey long-sleeved button-down shirt which complimented his pink hair. His scarf was wrapped around his neck as usual, and Gray couldn't help but think that Natsu looked incredible. 

"I made the mistake of asking Erza what to do on a date after we finished patrol," Natsu sighed, his expression revealing the trials he'd endured. "She wouldn't stop talking about it, then she dragged me all over the village to get stuff. When we were done, she tells me she's never even _been_ on a date, this is just what she'd always dreamed of. She never even gave me a chance to explain it wasn't for a girl," Natsu whined, even as he rolled his eyes at Erza's antics. "Then she and Anna took me shopping for clothes." 

"I'll make sure to tell Lyon, you know in case he ever gets the nerve to ask her out," Gray laughed, he could easily imagine Erza getting carried away, pulling Natsu behind her and taking him to all her favorite places. It was probably a good thing too, she'd been pretty upset earlier in the day. He wondered what she would think if she knew Natsu's date was with him. 

"Anyway, I hope you like it," Natsu smiled shyly, his features softened by the dancing flames of the torches and Gray's heart soared. All the stress of the day evaporated as he walked over to Natsu and hugged him. 

"It looks great, and I was starving, so this is awesome! Did Erza happen to say anything about feeding me?" Gray teased as he pointed to some table grapes, just to get a rise out of the dragon slayer. 

"What?! Hell no, you can feed your own damn self! "Natsu protested, crossing his arms in front of his chest. 

Gray shrugged and laughed, grabbing a bunch of grapes from a bowl on the blanket. He pulled one off the vine and threw it in the air before catching it in his mouth. "Too bad, that could have been fun," Gray winked as he handed Natsu some grapes. 

"Shall we?" Gray pointed to the floor cushions, "The sun is about to set." 

"Oh, yeah!" Natsu agreed cheerfully, although he still seemed flustered, like a kid playing at dress-up, which in all honesty he sort of was. Natsu offered Gray his hand, and he deliberately brushed his fingers on Natsu's palm, relishing the touch before lacing their fingers together and giving a firm squeeze. Natsu squeezed back, and they walked together toward the cushions. 

They sat next to each other, hands still laced together. Gray picked up the bouquet of roses and examined it, smelling the flowers before setting them aside. He looked up at the sky, watching it explode in hues of pink and orange as the sun went down behind the mountains. 

He soon lost interest, he could watch the sunset any day, but it wasn't often he was able to watch Natsu to his heart's content. Natsu looked over at Gray and flashed him one of his dazzling smiles before turning his gaze back to the sky. 

"I haven't done this in a long time," Natsu commented as he turned his attention back to Gray, "Just sat and enjoyed something for the beauty of it." 

He noticed Gray was still gazing at him and added, "You know, the night sky always reminded me of your eyes. When I was younger, I would sit outside at the entrance of the cave and look up at it, just to remind myself that you were still out there. It always made me feel less lonely." 

Gray found that inexplicably touching, especially since he had thought a lot about Natsu over the years too, "I'm not sure why you would have wanted to remember me at all, after what I did." 

"Are we back to that again?" Natsu grabbed some rolls and warmed them in his hand before passing one to Gray. 

"You said you were sorry, even back then," Natsu reminded him, "What happened to you was terrible, and I was too young to truly understand it." 

He looked down at his hands and began to shred the roll he was still holding as he talked, "When I called you back from your nightmare, I had no idea what I was doing, I was just following my instincts. Even though it worked, I somehow managed to tap into your feelings." 

Natsu stared at the mess he had made, and tentatively looked up to gauge Gray's reaction. "I felt everything you did, and it was too much. I'd never experienced such pain, and when you told me what had caused it, it went against everything I knew." 

"Natsu, I--." 

Natsu waved away Gray's response. "Let me finish, Ice Block," He stared deep into Gray's eyes, wanting him to accept his words as truth, "I was never angry with you for what happened. Even back then, my feelings for you were already strong, but I was young and stupid and said all the wrong things, and I managed to push you away from me. It was the exact opposite of what I wanted, but I was scared and didn't know how to fix it, so I ran away, and I regretted it ever since." 

"So yeah, I thought about you a lot, all the years we were apart," Natsu admitted, "but we're here now, and you need to stop feeling guilty about it. That part of our lives is over. This one," he moved his eyes down to Gray's lips and leaned forward to capture them with his, eliciting a small pleased sound from Gray before he moved back, "this one is just beginning. Now, let's eat, there are way too many things on this blanket." 

They managed to eat most of the food that Natsu had brought, feeding each other although not in any way that would be considered romantic. 

"Somehow, I don't think this is what Erza had in mind," Natsu managed to get out in between bursts of laughter. They were both covered in bits of food that had not quite made it anywhere near their mouths." 

"Probably not, but who cares?" Gray smirked, "She can go on her own date." 

Natsu snorted at that. He put his arm around Gray's shoulders, resting his head on Gray's broad shoulders as they sat quietly, enjoying the night air and each other. 

"How long do you think we have until the war gets here?" Gray's voice was anxious, and after a long day spent doing nothing but thinking about that very thing, Natsu had no desire to get into it. 

"There's no sense in worrying about it, let's just make the best of the time we have," Natsu said adamantly. "Besides, this is a date, and I think we've had enough serious talk for one night." 

"You were doing something pleasant with your lips this morning, something like this...," Natsu playfully tackled Gray onto the now cleared blanket and demonstrated what he meant. Gray let Natsu toy with him for a few minutes before turning the tables and pinning Natsu underneath him. 

"No, I think it went more like this," Gray grinned as he nibbled on Natsu's lips, using his teeth to give them a gentle bite before dipping his tongue into Natsu's mouth when he opened it in surprise. Natsu groaned, his body quickly responding to Gray's attention. 

Gray continued to play, slowly removing Natsu's scarf from around his neck and tossing it on the blanket, his teeth grazing on the sensitive area. He moved away, delighting in the way Natsu grumbled at his absence. 

Gray moved his hands down to Natsu's chest, his fingers attempting to unbutton the shirt that was in his way as he continued to distract Natsu with kisses. Once he'd unbuttoned the shirt, Gray's hands began to wander, touching the rugged chest and feeling the hard muscle underneath. 

He tweaked one of Natsu's nipples between his fingers, loving the feel of Natsu writhing in pleasure beneath him before boldly exploring the other with his mouth. 

He couldn't get enough of Natsu, the smell of whatever cologne Erza had forced on him was driving Gray crazy, and he wanted to touch and taste everything. Natsu tried to reverse their positions, but Gray fought him off, not wanting to relinquish control just yet. His pants tightened around him as he thought of Natsu returning the favor, and a low moan escaped him. 

Gray quickly moved his hands down past Natsu's abs all the way down to his belt. He was so intoxicated by Natsu's reactions that he was surprised when his hands were grabbed firmly, stopping their movement. 

"Can you slow down?" Natsu's breaths were coming in deliciously ragged pants. 

Gray immediately pulled his hands away and moved off Natsu, feeling a bit hurt by the rebuff. "I'm sorry, I got carried away." 

"I know, and it's good," Natsu blushed profusely, " _You_ make me feel good, but this is all new to me, and you're going too fast for me." 

And while that was true, it wasn't the whole truth. Natsu hadn't been able to shake the feeling that his dream had been real and Atlas was going to come for him at any moment. It made him wary. He knew if something happened to him, Gray would be hurt, and he wanted to cause him the least amount of pain he could. He also knew that while Gray was trying, dragons were still a big issue for them. 

Natsu had no intention of making a mating claim on Gray until he felt it was right to do so. Mates, especially new ones, needed to be near each other and if he ended up having to leave or Gray found out his secret and changed his mind, it could be devastating for both of them. 

"It's new to me too," Gray said finally, not wanting to admit that Natsu was right. 

"We have all the time in the world," Natsu told him matter-of-factly, "We're going to be together for the rest of our lives." 

"Rest of our lives? Aren't you getting a bit ahead of yourself?" Gray was taken aback by how confident Natsu sounded. 

"Well yeah, that's what our bond means," Natsu revealed, "We're soulmates." 

Gray wasn't sure what that meant, but if it kept Natsu with him, then he was okay with it. They were too tired to make their way back to their homes, so they cuddled up and decided to spend the night together in their field. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Grammarly fought me tooth and nail while I was editing so this chapter feels like an accomplishment considering it's a rather lengthy chapter. :)
> 
> A lot of things happened in this chapter and some of you who might be familiar with my other long multi-chapter stories are probably starting to realize right about now that if I'm writing this much fluffiness in Ch 13 of a planned 30 chap fic that means you're probably not going to like me soon. I can tell you that it won't have anything to do with Juvia, so there's no need to hate on her. 
> 
> Ironically, the story as it was originally planned doesn't even start for another 4 or 5 chapters, I just got so enamored of the backstory that it kind of took on a life of its own. I don't want to give anything away but just remember this story is meant to be a fairy tale.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gratsu Bingo 2019  
> Prompt: Free

Chapter 14 

Atlas Flame raced through the air, his body wreathed in raging hellfire as his wings flew him toward Talos as swiftly as they were able. He kept above cloud cover to avoid detection from any humans who might be keeping watch. 

It had been almost two years since the dragons had left their cave to take care of what they had thought would be a simple problem, which had turned out to be anything but, and they’d been in constant conflict ever since. 

The renegade dragon slayers were killing dragons indiscriminately, and this had caused some of the pro-human dragons to switch sides. Atlas had created the enchantment that had allowed for this to happen. This was a well-known fact that didn’t net him any friends among dragons or humans. 

He knew he’d made Igneel’s job harder than it needed to be and he hated it. He’d already begun trying to think of ways to revert the dragon slayer spell, to remove their magic and return it to its source, even if that was now only the ethernano present in the atmosphere. It would be a complicated process, but he was confident he could manage it, given enough time and resources. Two things he didn’t have access to at the moment. 

Atlas had decided enough was enough. He needed to get to work on that spell, but he couldn’t do that while he was responsible for Igneel’s protection and now that the renegade dragon slayers were after his brother he needed someone to take his place. Someone he knew he could trust to protect Igneel with his life no matter what the circumstances. Only one name came to mind, and even though Atlas knew his brother would hate him for it, he’d set off in search of his nephew. 

He examined his surroundings and allowed himself to relax...not much longer now. 

O-o 

Sting arrived in the morning, having spent the night in the barracks along with Wendy, per Erza’s request. Rogue was still asleep, so he hadn’t been able to ask him about Natsu and why the Fire Dragon Slayer had felt the need to keep the patrols a secret from them. 

It was something that had bothered him, even if he hadn’t voiced it. He and Natsu had been best friends for years, and even though they’d had a talk some months earlier, it felt like they’d never quite gotten back to normal. Their friendship had devolved into a comfortable acquaintance, full of fondness for times past but with no future in sight. 

Sting still felt as though Natsu had replaced him with Gray, and even though he could understand a lot of the reasons why, it didn’t keep him from feeling hurt by how distant their relationship had become. 

He shook those thoughts away as he watched Rogue toss and turn uncomfortably in their shared sleeping area. Once they’d gotten together, they’d soon stopped sleeping in the main room with the others, wanting privacy to explore their newfound intimacy. The others had quickly returned to their rooms as well. 

Sting reached out to run his fingers through Rogue’s hair and attempt to provide him some comfort, but he knew that would wake his mate up, so he stopped, hand in midair. 

He decided to let Rogue get whatever rest he was able. The way things were looking at the moment, it was something they wouldn’t be getting for much longer. Sting sent some feelings through their shared bond to help ease his mate back into a comfortable sleep and watched contentedly as a small smile graced Rogue’s lips as he snuggled into the covers, his arms reaching out for Sting. 

Erza was on a rampage, demanding they find every able-bodied man and woman in the village, with or without magic and train them to fight as well as defend themselves. Most of the mages Lyon and Gray had sent his way weren’t very powerful, they would have probably failed the tests required to enter the guard, but these were desperate times. 

He had it easy, he just had to train people, but Rogue was out actively looking for dragons to fight. Sting was well aware that Rogue was strong, hell in some ways he was stronger than him, yet Sting couldn’t help but wish that Natsu had chosen someone else to go on patrol with him. 

Lyon had explained to him that the only choices Natsu had left were Gajeel and Rogue and given those choices Rogue was, of course, the best one for the job. Gajeel and Natsu fought too often to make a good team long term, but that still left Sting with a distinct pang in his heart at the thought that Rogue might get into a dangerous situation and he wouldn’t be able to help in any way. He’d have to rely on Natsu and Happy to have his mate’s back, and that was as comforting as it was irksome. 

At the thought of the young dragon, he felt the familiar guilt and shame at having attacked him. Back when it had happened Igneel had given him a task he’d not been able to complete, although he’d tried. 

Igneel had ordered Sting to take care of the wyrmling until he was able to do so on his own, but when Sting had returned to the place where he and Wendy had left him, the wyrmling was long gone. Sting had looked for him for a few weeks but never once caught a whiff of his scent. 

He wanted to make it up to Happy for his mistake, but the dragon still acted scared of him and he didn’t know how to change that. For the moment he decided to go relax in the hot spring before he had to head back into work. 

O-o 

Natsu entered the hot spring surprised to find Sting already there. It made him a little nervous but also pleased. It was rare for them to get time together these days and he missed his friend. Besides, he was in a great mood, having woken up next to Gray for the second day in a row. They’d spent a lazy morning making out in the field before heading home to get ready for work. He could absolutely get used to that. He finally understood why Sting and Rogue were always in such a great mood in the mornings. 

“Mind if I join you?” Natsu asked, and when Sting shook his head, he immediately stripped and walked into the spring, sitting down on one of the natural steps and letting the scalding water work away at his aching muscles. 

“Have a good night last night?” Sting teased as he openly stared at Natsu’s neck and laughed. 

“What?” Natsu glanced at him in confusion, quickly running his fingers along his neck, which only made Sting laugh that much harder. 

“It looks like you were gnawed on by a wild animal,” Sting managed in between laughs. 

Natsu was embarrassed to feel himself blushing, but he was too happy to care. 

“Maybe ask Gray to show some restraint next time, word will definitely get out soon if you two are walking around town like that.” 

“How did you know it was Gray?” 

“Besides the fact that I walked past the two of you sleeping on my way home, who else would it be?” Sting rolled his eyes at his friend. 

“So are you mates now?” Sting asked him eagerly. 

Natsu shook his head and looked away, knowing he wouldn’t be able to adequately explain his reasons. 

“Why the hell not? For fuck’s sake Natsu you’ve been eye-fucking the guy since he got here and honestly he’s not much better!” 

“I’ve been doing no such thing,” Natsu protested. 

“You’re a moron,” Sting sighed, “How have you been able to fight the instinct for as long as you have? I was terrified I would hurt Rogue if I didn’t act on it soon and he was the same. We wouldn’t even have known what was happening if Weisslogia and Skiadrum hadn’t explained it to us. They seemed surprised that ended up being part of the enchantment.” 

Sting regarded him with concern and Natsu was curious if mating worked differently for dragon slayers. Sure it was difficult and occasionally painful to repress his instincts and urges, but it had never been a huge problem yet. Then again he was usually so tired, that was probably the more likely reason. 

“Is it because of the dragon thing?” Sting rubbed his forehead, looking puzzled, “Dude, he wants to bone _you_ , not your dragon. What the hell does it matter?” 

“I mean that’s part of it, yeah, but it’s more than that,” Natsu admitted, “With everything that’s going on I just didn’t think it was a good time.” He hoped that Sting would leave it at that. 

Sting studied him and quickly became serious, “What _is_ going on?” 

Natsu frowned, debating whether he should reveal his suspicions. If he was right the others deserved to know, they’d be responsible for defending the town as best they could in his absence. He was counting on Happy to continue the patrols without him. 

“I think Atlas is coming for me,” Natsu revealed, “If that’s true, there’s no way I could claim Gray and then leave even if I wanted to. That would be dangerous for both of us.” 

“The nightmare?” Sting gawked at him, “You think Atlas was trying to communicate with you, don’t you?” 

Natsu nodded, meeting Sting’s gaze and seeing the dread in his friend’s eyes. 

“Can he even do that?” Sting questioned out loud. 

“I don’t know, but the more I think about it, the more convinced I am, it felt too real to be anything else.” 

“Well, if you’re right then you definitely did the right thing by not claiming him.” Sting grimaced, his brow creasing with worry, “But I really hope you’re wrong.” 

“You and me both,” Natsu submerged himself in the hot water, coming back up only when his lungs were begging for air. He pushed his hair back only to see Sting still wearing the same expression. 

“Natsu,” Sting’s voice was heavy, and Natsu immediately knew what he was going to ask. 

“I won’t let anything happen to him,” Natsu assured him with a confident smile, “I promise I’ll always watch out for him.” 

He could almost see the tension ease itself out of Sting’s shoulders at his words, “I’m going to hold you to that. He means everything to me.” Sting’s eyes bored into Natsu, willing him to recognize the trust he was placing in him,” You’ll understand what I mean as soon as you’re mated.” 

“I’m happy for you, by the way,” Sting’s features softened, his smile full of affection,” We all are. You were a stubborn idiot, it was pretty obvious how he felt about you.” 

“Was it?” Natsu mused. 

Sting answered by dunking him underwater, and it soon devolved into a splash war, both of them giggling like lunatics. 

“Am I interrupting something?” Rogue tried to sound stern, but there was a slight smile he couldn’t conceal as he watched the two dragon slayers playing. 

Natsu and Sting communicated with a look Rogue immediately recognized from their childhood as being trouble. He tried to turn and run, but they were too quick, each grabbing one of his arms and dragging him into the water with them, clothes and all. 

They continued to play for a few minutes before Sting got a mischievous look on his face and began whispering in Rogue’s ear, making Rogue turn his head to stare at Natsu’s neck before dissolving into giggles. 

“Holy shit, Natsu!” Rogue covered his mouth in mock shock, “Get attacked by another dragon?” 

“Very funny,” Natsu stuck his tongue out at Rogue, who grinned at him good-naturedly before getting caught in an embrace by Sting, “On that note, I’ll let you guys have some alone time before we have to go patrol, be ready in an hour.” 

By the time Natsu had finished bathing himself, they’d already forgotten all about him. He watched them briefly, smiling at how in love they were with each other. He really was happy for them, and he promised himself he would do everything in his power to protect that love. 

He got himself ready and spent some time play wrestling with Happy as they waited for Rogue to show up. They finally heard Sting leave the cave and head into town even as Rogue’s quiet steps approached Natsu’s room. 

The three of them started walking towards the cave exit, Rogue startling Natsu when he broke the silence. 

“It was nice to see you and Sting spending some time together,” Natsu could almost hear the smile in Rogue’s words, “He misses you, you know.” 

“I miss him too,” Natsu admitted, feeling sorry that his friendship with Sting had suffered so much since Gray had arrived. If only Erza hadn’t forced them together, or if the dragons hadn’t all left, things might have been different, but Natsu held on to the idea it was all temporary. Someday soon it would all be resolved, and things could go back to the way they were. 

Sting was his best friend, the first one to accept him out of all his friends. When they were younger, they’d been inseparable, wreaking havoc on the school and on rare occasions the orphanage with their pranks and play. Natsu couldn’t imagine anything that could really destroy that bond any more than the one he shared with his mate. 

He called upon his magic and turned into his dragon form hearing Rogue gasp as he did so. Natsu turned and looked at him quizzically. 

“I’m sorry, it’s going to take me a while to get used to that,” Rogue admitted, sounding embarrassed at his outburst. 

“It’s okay, “Natsu grumbled softly, trying to ignore the sting of those words. Rogue hadn’t said anything bad, and he couldn’t really expect him to respond differently. He’d been incredibly accepting as it was. 

They remained quiet for a few hours until it started to get on Natsu’s nerves. “Why are you so quiet?” He asked the Shadow Dragon Slayer as he flew next to Happy. Rogue shook his head once again, looking over at Natsu in his dragon form. 

“All of this is so strange, the idea that a human can just turn into a dragon, I never thought it was possible. I mean, is the opposite true? Can a dragon turn into a human as well?” Rogue wondered aloud. 

Natsu decided to avoid the question even though he obviously knew the answer. He began his marking, knowing it would disgust Rogue and cause him to leave the topic alone. Natsu focused on his task, while Happy and Rogue flew behind him to keep track of anything that might try to attack them from the rear. 

O-o 

Atlas was about two hundred miles from Talos when he first encountered the scent that shouldn’t have been there yet. He roared, torn between great pride and anger at his nephew for doing something so reckless. He had expanded their territory, from what Atlas could tell he’d managed to almost double it, and Atlas could only imagine the effort required for a dragon Natsu’s size to do that. It would have been exhausting, especially combined with training and his regular duties. 

_Damn it, boy!_ _Why must you always take things too far?_

The first twinge of doubt crossed his mind. If Natsu was prepared to work this hard to protect the town, what lengths would he be willing to go to protect his father? Could he really ask this of him? 

Atlas tried to ignore the guilt that was gnawing away at him. He had to create that counterspell, there was no other way to end the war at this point without the dragon population being decimated. He needed help, and Natsu was the only one he could really trust with Igneel’s safety. He steeled himself for what was to come. 

When he was about eighty miles from Talos, he was surprised to recognize the sharp tang of Natsu’s dragon scent some miles ahead of him. Why would Natsu be in his dragon form in broad daylight? Atlas couldn’t think of any reason that wasn’t dangerous so even though he was exhausted from flying for two days straight without any respite Atas pushed himself to meet up with his nephew. 

O-o 

“Something’s coming up behind us, flying fast,” Rogue reported, his voice tense as he got his magic ready. He was nervous, never having had to use his magic while flying atop a dragon before. The few times he’d ridden Skiadrum they had been more like joyrides, something to help them bond as they got to know each other better. 

“Relax, it’s just Atlas,” Natsu responded, having already turned around. He knew what he would see, there was no way he’d ever confuse that scent, especially not when part of him had been expecting it. He was filled with equal parts elation and trepidation as his uncle flew towards them, confused as to why he was coming so fast. He wondered if his uncle were being followed, but he’d never known Atlas to run away from a fight, and he didn’t detect any other dragon smells in the vicinity. 

He and Happy stayed where they were, waiting for Atlas to reach them. 

“Is everything okay?” Atlas spoke with effort, his breath coming in ragged pants as he caught up to them. 

“Everything’s fine,” Natsu replied, watching his uncle with confusion. 

“But you’re in your dragon form in plain daylight!” Atlas exclaimed. 

“Yeah, a lot has happened,” Natsu explained, “We were just doing the patrol. That spell you taught me sure has come in handy.” 

“Spell?” Atlas was too tired to follow his meaning, and Natsu cringed as he saw how exhausted his uncle looked. The hellfire dragon looked at Happy with curious eyes, “Who’s this youngling?” 

“This is Happy,” Happy bowed his head in respect and Natsu felt a surge of love for the young dragon that had quickly become so important to him. “I’ll fill you in once we get home. Happy, can you and Rogue scrounge up some grub for Atlas?” 

“Aye, sir!” Happy chirped as he changed direction and headed back towards the woods to hunt, while Rogue yelled he would get the other dragon slayers and meet them again at the cave later. 

“I’m confused as hell, but you’re fine, and I’m too tired to care about anything else right now,” Atlas admitted honestly, “Let’s go home.” 

Natsu flew next to his uncle, examining him as they traveled. It was hard to see through his hellfire, but Natsu was able to detect a large number of scars across Atlas’ body that hadn’t been there before. Most of them looked faded, but there were a few that looked more recent. 

It shocked Natsu because his uncle had always been able to heal both himself and others. To have that much damage could only mean one of two things, either the wounds had been more than he could treat, or he was depleting his magic to heal others. Healing was not a typical dragon ability outside of sky dragons, Natsu only had a small amount because of his mother, or at least that’s what Igneel had told him when he was younger. 

That thought put him right back into the nightmare, remembering how the other dragons had looked and how the dream had ended. 

“Where’s Dad?” Natsu’s voice cracked as his anxiety kicked in hard and fast. He had an urgent need to be reassured that Igneel was okay and when Atlas didn’t respond right away, he was filled with dread. 

“Igneel is fine,” Atlas was quick to assure him before adding, “He just doesn’t know I’m here.” 

“What?! Who the hell is watching him then?” Natsu roared, his fire spewing out of his muzzle as fury erupted through him. “You promised me, Atlas.” 

“Metalicana is watching him.” 

“But he’s injured,” Natsu protested, and Atlas stared at him, his green eyes narrowing as he spoke. 

“How the hell could you possibly know that?” 

So Atlas had not been trying to communicate with him after all. They reached the cave entrance soon after without Natsu having answered the question. 

Atlas sneaked glances at him but didn’t push, the tired dragon immediately collapsing in the main room, his loud snores reverberating throughout the cave. Natsu sat in his human form and watched his uncle sleep as his thoughts ran wild. After a few minutes, he moved to the massive dragon’s side, laying down next to him and tugging the dragon’s large wing around him like a blanket. Natsu felt it tighten around him even as Atlas grunted contentedly in his sleep. He soon fell into a comfortable sleep. 

O-o 

“Have a good time last night?” Sting tried to sound innocent as they were changing into their guard uniforms in the men’s changing room, but Gray wasn’t fooled. From the moment Sting had arrived in town he’d been trying to get a look at his neck. 

Gray turned away from the dragon slayer as he took his shirt off, which he’d managed to keep on for this very same reason. He and Natsu had both gotten carried away that morning, but while the dragon slayer always wore his scarf, Gray usually lost his shirt at some point during the day. 

Sting laughed, “Relax man, I already saw your handiwork this morning, I just wanted to see if Natsu gave as good as he got.” 

He became serious, his voice lowering into a growl, “Do I have to give you the if you hurt him speech, or are we good?” 

Gray rolled his eyes, “We’re good, I’d never hurt him.” 

“Good, cause I _will_ end you,” Sting replied matter of factly before breaking into one of his carefree grins leaving Gray feeling unsettled as he walked over to the area Erza had assigned them to do their training. 

O-o 

Natsu waited impatiently for his uncle to wake up, even using all his senses he hadn’t been able to suss out anything more and it frustrated him. If Atlas hadn’t tried to communicate with him, then had the dream just been a coincidence? Had he tapped into some new ability? 

He supposed it didn’t really matter, the point was he’d known Atlas was coming for him and he’d been right. As much as he’d been dreading this moment, a part of him had always known it was inevitable. 

He was having a hard time keeping his emotions under control, more than anything he wanted to prevent Gray from realizing anything was amiss yet. It was going to be hard enough to leave after having only just gotten together. Natsu didn’t want to go, but he didn’t exactly have a choice, not while his father was in danger. He could only hope that Atlas gave him enough time to say goodbye. 

Natsu knew Gray was going to be angry, and he was going to be scared. He remembered how Gray’s body had trembled when he’d learned Natsu had gone up against the silver dragon. He fought off the sorrow of knowing he was going to have to inflict pain on his beloved. 

Natsu played with his scarf, trying very hard to not think about the fact that he might very well never return. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So it begins… I will try very hard to stay true to the every two weeks' schedule for the next few chapters. The next part of the story is one of the ones I was having trouble with, so not all the chapters are ready, although the next chapter is about 50% done. The following two chapters are still being plotted out, one should be in Natsu’s POV, the other in Gray’s.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gratsu Bingo 2019  
> Prompt: Scarf

Chapter 15 

Happy soon returned with his kill, a large mountain Vulcan, before immediately flying off to get another as he realized it wouldn’t do much to sate Atlas considering his enormous size. Rogue wasn’t with him so Natsu could only assume he’d gone to get the others. 

The hellfire dragon finally awoke at the smell of food and quickly consumed the Vulcan, letting out a loud burp. As soon as he was done, his eyes narrowed, and he glared at his nephew. He snarled, “What were you thinking?” 

Natsu gave him a dirty look, not entirely sure what his uncle was referring to. 

“Why did you expand our territory so much? You should only make it as large as you can reasonably defend, boy! You were killing yourself.” 

“It wasn’t that bad,” Natsu tried to protest, purposefully downplaying how tough the last couple of years had been. “There are a lot more people living in Talos now, I wanted to make sure the dragons stayed far away.” 

“I understand you wanted to protect everyone, Natsu, but we’re at war. It just isn’t possible, and making yourself weaker in the process helps no one. The sooner you learn that the better off you’ll be,” There was an underlying urgency to Atlas’ words that Natsu could only sense, but he didn’t really understand what it meant. 

“What happened to you guys? You said you’d be back in a few months and that was years ago,” Natsu reminded his uncle, a part of him desperate to know what was happening even as he was terrified of the answer. 

“Things were a lot worse than we’d been led to believe,” Atlas replied carefully, managing to give away nothing. He leaned forward as he studied his nephew, “When you saw me, you didn’t look surprised in the least. Why is that?” 

Natsu told him about the dream and waited to be told that it wasn’t real, that it had been his overactive imagination at work. 

“Has this happened before?” Atlas tilted his head, waiting for Natsu’s answer. 

Natsu could only shrug, the fact was he’d been so tired of late that he couldn’t even tell if he’d been dreaming. “I don’t think so, but I don’t often remember my dreams.” 

Atlas sighed, “It sounds like the dream was in my perspective so maybe I somehow managed to link with you. I was already thinking of asking for your help at the time, so I suppose it’s possible. Even I don’t know the full extent of my magic.” 

“That was Acnologia you saw, he’s the leader of the renegade dragon slayers,” Atlas appeared irritated just talking about him, “He’s a tough bastard, and currently the biggest threat to all of us.” 

“But I don’t understand,” Natsu puzzled, “How can he change into a dragon? Is he like me?” 

“He’s nothing like you!” Atlas roared, his words making the cave shake around them. He glared at the cave walls a bit before continuing with his explanation, “We told you about how renegade dragon slayers were using our blood to make themselves stronger, but this is different. It seems like the more the dragon slayers use our magic, the more dragon-like they become. I’ve seen some signs that it has driven a few to madness. 

You’ve always been both so your brain can handle the change between one form and the other, but the dragon slayers are human, and it seems like my enchantment is attempting to turn them into dragons, instead of allowing the two natures to coexist like they do in you. That’s just my guess, if it weren’t such a disaster it would be a rather exciting puzzle, considering there was very little transformation magic involved. 

“What about _our_ slayers?” Natsu could hear his heart pounding in his head, he’d seen no signs of this in his friends, but he couldn’t help but feel guilty at the thought that it was a possibility. 

“I don’t know what to tell you. I still think they’ll be fine,” Atlas scratched his muzzle with his claws, looking pensive, “They don’t use their magic as much, and they certainly don’t bathe themselves in the blood of other dragons. You don’t understand the amounts of magic these dragon slayers are using daily. But if I do manage to create a counterspell, I will offer them the choice to keep their magic or return it to their dragons. 

Natsu knew Atlas was trying to be reassuring, but it wasn’t helping. Give up their magic? Would they really want to do that? It was such a big part of who they were now, and of what drew them together. More than ever before, he was determined to keep them as far away from the war front as he possibly could. 

“How bad is it?” 

Although the question was vague, Natsu knew Atlas would understand what he was asking. 

“Bad kid, if you don’t mind I’m going to wait for the others to get here before I get into that, I’m too tired to tell the story twice, and frankly it’s not a happy tale.” 

Natsu could feel Atlas’ eyes on him, studying him carefully, and as he met his gaze he was surprised to see Atlas looked uncertain, it wasn’t something Natsu had ever seen before, and for the first time, he began to wonder how much fighting in the war had changed their dragons. 

“What is it?” 

After a long silence, Atlas finally responded, and Natsu could sense how hard this decision had been for his uncle. 

“I need to ask something of you, something I’m not proud of, but you’re the only one I can trust.” 

“You want me to come back with you, don’t you?” 

Atlas nodded, “I need you to take over your father’s protection so I can work on something. It might be the only chance we have left to salvage this mess.” 

“You know Dad isn’t going to like this.” 

“I know, but I think this war has taught us both that what we would like and what _is_ are two very different things. Igneel won’t like it, and he’ll possibly never forgive me for it, but eventually, he’ll come to accept the need for it.” 

Natsu was terrified, he’d only gone up against one dragon and that hadn’t exactly gone great. How on Earth was he going to be able to protect his dad when he’d barely been able to defend himself? But he knew Atlas would never ask this of him if there were any other way. This war had to end, and he would do his best to make that happen, for all of them. 

Natsu pushed all his doubts and fears out of his mind, this was something he had to do, “Alright, I’ll go.” 

“Thanks, I hope you don’t come to regret it.” 

Natsu couldn’t agree more, he wasn’t looking forward to what was coming next. 

Atlas lay back down, his eyes half-lidded as he peered at his nephew with interest. “Now, why don’t we talk about something else for a while? Why were you flying around in your dragon form in broad daylight? What’s all this about a spell? 

Natsu thought about where to start. He was happy to see his uncle, even though he knew his presence was only going to create sadness for him and everyone around him. “Everyone’s been concerned about me and trying to figure out what I’ve been doing at night. I held them off as long as I could, but then I got attacked by a silver dragon a few days ago, and I was injured badly.” 

Natsu heard a strangled noise and suddenly felt the familiar warmth of his uncle’s healing magic flow through him even as the great dragon rubbed his muzzle against Natsu’s face gently. Natsu was surprised by his uncle’s reaction, a stark contrast to other times he’d been injured when Atlas had seemed almost pleased at his discomfort. 

“I’m fine, Wendy healed me,” Natsu did his best to reassure him, reverting to the playfulness that had usually marked their conversations, “Jeez, I never expected the war would make you so soft.” 

Atlas continued to stare at him with a conflicted expression. “We’ve been so worried about you kids here on your own. We’d never left you alone before, I’m sorry we couldn’t stay.” 

“It was an adjustment, but we’ve managed okay,” when he saw Atlas did not look convinced he tried to hearten him, “I promise.” 

Natsu was unsettled by all the changes in his uncle, making him even more curious to find out what he’d been through in his absence. He suddenly realized that this had been the first time he’d been seriously injured and Atlas had not been around to heal him and while it made him sad to see the guilt, it warmed his heart to know his uncle cared so much. 

He waited for Atlas to control his emotions before continuing, “Anyway, the others were no longer willing to listen to my excuses. Then I had that dream, and when I told them about it, Erza freaked and ordered me to take another slayer with me. I wasn’t going to be able to hide anymore, so I had to tell them something. I told them you taught me a spell that allowed me to mark and move around swiftly.” 

“Do they all know you can turn into a dragon?” Atlas leaned forward as he listened, his muzzle almost touching Natsu’s shoulder. 

“Just Rogue for now and he’s promised not to tell anyone.” 

Atlas brows furrowed and he remained quiet as he seemed to think over Natsu’s words. The next words that came out of his mouth shocked Natsu to his very core. 

“You’re going to have to tell them eventually, you might as well do it now. You might never get a better opportunity.“ 

“I can’t,” Natsu’s words were tinged with panic. It wasn’t just the fear of defying Igneel but a deeper one of losing everyone he cared about. 

“Why the hell not?” Atlas glared at him, and Natsu finally saw traces of the personality he was used to.” 

“I promised Igneel, besides if I did, Gray would find out.” 

“Natsu, I know you want to follow your father’s orders, but he’s wrong about this. You can’t keep denying who you are, not when it’s hurting you to do so. I can already smell your Gray all over you, not to mention you’re fated. He was a child when he rejected you, don’t you think he’s grown since then? And the dragon slayers are your friends, they’ve known you for a long time. Do you really think so little of them?” 

“It’s not just them, there are a lot of people who hate dragons. Even more so since the war started and dragons began destroying villages. There are thousands of people who have had to move here because there’s nowhere else for them to go. Do you really think they’ll welcome me with open arms just because I happen to be human as well?” 

“You can’t help who you are any more than they can. And I didn’t tell you to go to the middle of town and make an announcement. All I’m saying is that you should tell those that are closest to you and trust that they will accept you for who you are. Rogue seems to be handling it well.” 

“He doesn’t know its really me. Happy is the only one who knows what I really am.” 

“Ugh! I swear you’re as stubborn as your father. Fine, I suppose you’d know best, but at least think about it?” 

Natsu was having trouble reconciling this version of his uncle with the gruff dragon he was used to, the one who would never have considered defying his brother or even suggesting that he might be wrong. He couldn’t say he didn’t like it, but it unsettled him to see so many changes. 

Atlas remained silent, knowing Natsu had stopped listening. He tapped his claws against the cave floor, thinking of something else they could talk about, something that would be neutral, and he remembered Happy. “So, where did this wyrmling come from? I thought there weren’t any left.” 

“He found me when I was injured and brought me back here. He was the baby dragon Sting, and the others attacked,” Natsu reminded him, “He’s been on his own all this time, so I offered him to live here with us.” 

Atlas shut his eyes, still wondering how things had deteriorated for them so quickly. How much had been his fault? He felt the familiar guilt eat away at him and knew there was no real answer. Dragons had already been dying in this war long before he ever became involved. 

“There was a time when that would never have happened. I remember when our lairs were filled with wyrmlings, and now there are so few of us left. I don’t know that we’re going to be able to bounce back from this.” 

“I’m going to go into my room, do some research while we wait for the other slayers to get here, there isn’t a lot of time.” 

Natsu nodded and wondered if he should try to go speak with Gray now, or whether he should wait to hear more of what was happening. Happy had come in with another Vulcan and Natsu decided to go ahead and hunt for the rest of them. It was going to be a long night. 

O-o 

All the slayers sat in the large room, eating the meat Natsu had hunted and cooked, while Atlas ate the food Happy had brought him. The young wyrmling sat next to the giant dragon, looking more relaxed than they’d ever seen him. He didn’t even seem to mind Sting’s presence for once. 

He appeared to be trying to emulate Atlas' gestures, and it suddenly brought home to Natsu the fact that Happy had really been alone all this time, relying only on his instincts for survival. Outside of Natsu, when had Happy been able to interact with other red dragons? It saddened him to think that maybe if they’d found Happy sooner, he could have lived with them and gotten everything he needed. 

The slayers didn’t want to admit it, given the circumstances, but having Atlas with them had boosted their morale incredibly. Although it made them wish that all the dragons were there, like before they had left to fight. 

Atlas had told them their parents were all alive, although injured, but he’d opted not to tell them anything else until after they’d finished eating. Instead, he had them catch him up on their lives, paying close attention to their replies. His request was unusual, give how Atlas had always kept himself apart. 

He was the only one of the dragons without a child of his own, although the other slayers didn't’ know that, preferring to share Natsu with Igneel rather than acquire a child of his own. It took Natsu a bit to realize that Atlas wanted to bring his friends' news of their children, perhaps in the hopes that it would bring them comfort. 

Once everyone had finished eating, they looked over to Atlas, knowing he had a lot to tell them. 

“I wish the news were better,” Atlas began, “As you might have heard already my enchantment had some unexpected side effects. At first, it turned the war in our favor, but now that some of the dragon slayers have begun to change, it has made everything worse.” 

“What do you mean by change, Atlas?” Wendy asked, her eyes curious but not worried. 

“Well, some of them have gone mad, while others have begun to become more dragon-like. The stronger ones can even transform into a type of dragon form.” 

“They can turn into dragons?” Sting asked excitedly as Rogue rolled his eyes at him. 

“Yes, Sting, they can, and once they get to that state they are very powerful, but it’s at the cost of their sanity. They are neither human nor dragon at that point, and they kill both.” 

“Is that going to happen to us?” Gajeel demanded, never one for sugarcoating things. 

“I don’t think so, as I told Natsu earlier, these dragon slayers use large amounts of dragon magic daily, much more than you ever have. One of my reasons for coming here was to get Natsu. I need him to take over Igneel’s protection so that I can try to create a counterspell. If I’m successful, you will have the choice to have your magic removed. I’m not sure about the two of you, though, ” Atlas glanced at Sting and Rogue, “ With you being a mated pair, I’d be concerned as to how having your magic removed would affect you.” 

“You’re leaving?” Wendy was the first to ask what they were all thinking, looking to Natsu for an answer. 

“Yeah,” Natsu replied, trying to make it sound like it was no big deal, “Happy and Rogue can continue patrols while I’m gone.” 

Atlas waited to see if they had any more questions on the subject before continuing to give them an update on what was going on. 

“As I said earlier, when the dragon slayers began fighting on our side, it brought the tide of the war in our favor. But once the renegades started killing indiscriminately, Deliora, who is the leader of the opposition, used this to their advantage. He began recruiting dragons to his side, and many of them listened. 

Deliora also began to try to make the remaining dragons doubt Igneel’s leadership, attempting to replace him with someone he could control, and that is something else we’re fighting against.” 

“The war itself has changed, we are now fighting two sets of enemies. While the dragons are all trying to kill each other, the renegades are intent on exterminating all dragons, and if things continue in this fashion, they may soon get their wish. Igneel is trying to convince Deliora to agree to a temporary truce so they can go after the renegades together, but that isn’t going to happen.” 

“A lot of dragons have died, and humans as well. We need to find a way to finish this quickly, or there might be nothing left to save,” Atlas lamented. 

“You didn’t know, Atlas,” Wendy tried to soothe him, sensing the guilt the dragon was carrying, “You did what you thought was best, it’s all anyone can ever do.” 

“Thanks, Wendy,” Atlas grumbled affectionately, “but there is no denying that I am responsible for this turn of events, which is why it must fall to me to do what I can to fix it.” 

“Wait, isn’t that the name of the dragon that destroyed Gray’s village?” Gajeel blurted out, looking at Natsu to gauge his reaction. 

Atlas grunted his assent, “Deliora has been responsible for a lot of terrible things, he’s the bane of the red dragons. Igneel should have killed him when he had the chance.” 

Natsu bristled at hearing Deliora mentioned, and he promised himself that if he ever got a chance at him, he would not falter. 

“If I could just remove the renegade dragon slayer threat, maybe we can talk sense into the remaining dragons and just stop all the fighting. If not, dragons are likely to become extinct very soon. 

“We’d like to come too,” Wendy looked at the others for support. They all nodded their agreement. 

Before Atlas could respond, Natsu snarled, “Absolutely not!” 

“Igneel promised me you would never have to get involved in this war, and I’m holding him to that.” 

“This isn’t something you can decide for us, Salamander,” Gajeel, never one to enjoy being told what to do growled angrily. 

“We’re stronger when we fight together,” Rogue reminded him. 

“Didn’t you listen to a word Atlas said?” Natsu pleaded, trying to make them see he was only interested in keeping them safe, “I don’t want that for you.” 

“That won’t happen to us,” Sting assured him. 

“You don’t know that, Sting,” Natsu argued, “What if it happens faster because you’ve had the magic longer? Atlas created the enchantment, and even _he_ doesn’t know. You guys are staying, and that’s final.” 

“It could happen to you too,” Gajeel pointed out, and Natsu had no way to explain why that wasn’t true without giving himself away, so he only glared at Gajeel angrily with his arms crossed over his chest. 

O-o 

They had stayed up for hours arguing until Natsu had finally convinced the others to stay. Atlas had wanted to leave then, but Natsu had refused, and Atlas decided to let him have his way this once. 

He’d joined Rogue and Happy on their patrol wanting to make sure Happy knew everything he needed to continue to do the job safely. Natsu could only marvel at how quickly Atlas had taken to the young dragon. He really was a soft touch underneath all his bravado. 

There were a few people Natsu needed to say goodbye to before he left. People that had been important to him all throughout his time at the village. 

He made his way out of the cave and down the mountain. Walking the same path he’d taken every day since he was eight years old. 

The first time he’d gone to the village had been for school. Anna had shown up before daylight to walk him down. She’d held his hand as she told him all about the school he would be attending, trying hard to make everything feel familiar for him when he finally got there, but most importantly caring enough to make him feel welcome in a strange place. She told him a little about all the kids he would meet, kids that had ended up being such an essential part of his life. 

Natsu wished he could say he’d listened to any of it, but he’d been too distracted by all the new smells and sounds assailing his senses to really make sense of her words. The hum of her constant chatter had at least managed to calm his nerves. The only boy he’d ever met had been Gray and as much fun as that had been at first, it had also created great fear within him. 

It was probably a good thing that Sting, a boy very similar to Natsu in temperament, had been the first person to greet him. They became instant friends, laughing and playing together from the second they’d met. The same couldn’t be said about Erza, who was the first girl he ever met. 

Erza had no patience for games, or for people who didn’t take things seriously. They had clashed so much at first, there had been many a day when Natsu had returned home covered in bruises, much to Atlas’ amusement and Igneel’s distress. Violence seemed to be the only language she understood, and probably for the first year he attended school, he was terrified of her. 

He had no idea when that had changed, but over the years he’d grown to genuinely care for her, finally able to recognize the pain she hid. After her mother became a dragon slayer and left with her dragon Belserion, Erza had been thrust into the unenviable position of always waiting for someone who was fighting in a war that seemed to have no end in sight. With only an occasional message sent with the dragons to let her know her mother was still alive. 

There was no way Natsu could leave Talos without telling her, he knew that while she might understand, it would only add to the pain she already lived daily. Erza deserved better than that from him. 

Natsu reached the field, _their_ field as he liked to think of it, sooner than expected. He wasn’t looking forward to saying goodbye to Gray, he knew the ice mage was not going to accept his departure, was going to fight him tooth and nail to stay. He could only hope in time Gray would come to understand he’d really had no other choice. 

He closed his eyes, focusing on their bond, testing to see if he could determine where Gray was. He could sense him, but he didn’t seem to be close. Natsu wondered if he’d still be able to feel him when he arrived at their destination. 

He didn’t want to admit it, even to himself, but he was terrified. Would he be strong enough to protect Igneel from Acnologia, or any other threat? Would this be the last time he saw the village he’d come to think of as his? 

Natsu hurried to Erza’s office, hoping she would be there working on plans for boosting the town’s defenses. Atlas wasn’t the most patient of dragons and now that he was ready to leave, every minute spent away from Igneel was making him more and more ill-tempered. 

The door opened just as he was about to knock, and Lyon walked out, his eyes twinkling while a dreamy smile played on his lips. 

“Hey!” Natsu greeted, quickly moving out of his way. 

“Oh, hi,” Lyon managed to look sheepish, his hand rubbing absently at the back of his neck. 

Natsu whispered, “Dude, are you ever going to ask her out?” 

Lyon sighed, “It’s not that easy.” 

“Of course it is, just ask her, don’t waste any more time,” Natsu advised, patting the man on the shoulder. 

He wanted to ask Lyon to watch out for Gray while he was gone, to make sure not to let him wallow in his absence too much, but the words only stuck in his throat. Instead, he asked him to tell Gray to meet him at the field in a while. 

Lyon agreed and walked away, stopping for a moment to look back at Natsu with a worried frown. Natsu waited until he was out of sight before knocking on the door as he opened it, alerting Erza to his presence. 

Erza, who had been sitting at her desk with a thoughtful expression on her face, looked up in confusion as she saw Natsu standing in her doorway. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be on patrol with Rogue?” 

Natsu closed the door behind him and walked towards her slowly, his steps sounding hollow on the polished wood of her office floor. Erza’s shoulders slumped as he got closer and her eyes welled up. 

She uttered a small cry before covering her mouth with her hand, “No.” 

Natsu felt terrible, watching the different emotions play out across her face. “I’m sorry. Atlas arrived yesterday. I have to go with him, they need me. He did tell me your mom is fine, pissing people off left and right, so there’s that,” Natsu told her, wanting to give her something positive to hold on to. 

Erza looked relieved, cradling her face between her hands for a moment before rising from her chair, her scarlet hair draping itself prettily around her face. She walked around her desk and in an awkward movement, wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace. Natsu hugged her back, feeling the cold metal of her armor press against his chest, smelling the slight bitterness of the salt in her tears and the hint of strawberries in her hair. He found himself sniffing her, trying to commit her scent to memory. He fought off the tears that wanted to come, not wanting to alarm her with his fear. 

She finally let go and studied him, knowing her, probably seeing every little thing he was trying to hide. 

“Well, of course they do, you’re a fierce fighter,” Erza smiled bravely as if all this time they dragons had all been sitting around, just waiting for Natsu to show up. “Now go out there and make us proud, if anyone can end this war, it’s you.” 

Natsu snorted, knowing that was absolute rubbish, but loving her for trying to build him up anyway. He gave her one last hug and kissed her forehead, “Thanks for everything, Erza.” 

“It’s not goodbye, idiot. It’s just... see you later. I’ll make sure Talos is the same when you return.” 

Natsu nodded, not trusting his voice. He began to walk away, already thinking about Anna when Erza called out. 

“Natsu?” 

He turned, eyebrow raised in silent question. 

Natsu could tell there was something important Erza wanted to ask of him, and he held his breath, but she only said, “You never told me how your date went.” 

“It was perfect,” Natsu replied smiling at her sadly. He hadn’t needed to hear her words to know it was about her mother, and so in the bravest tone he could muster he asserted, “I promise, we’ll be back before you know it.” 

“Good man, see that you are.” 

With a final wave, he left her office, closing the door behind him so that no one could see her break down. 

He felt his fingers move instinctively towards the fringe of his scarf, playing with the dangling strands as he tried to settle himself, already feeling tentative prods from Gray at the bond. Erza had been the easiest of his stops. From now on, they only got progressively harder. 

He gave the interior of the building one last glance on his way out, quickly picking out the cracks in the plaster and the sour smell of sweat in the air that never entirely went away no matter how many times it was cleaned. 

Natsu couldn’t help but be amused to find that despite the number of times he’d gotten injured and how he almost ran out the moment his shifts were over, he was actually going to miss this place. 

Being a member of the Guard had allowed him to belong to a group, and be accepted by the town as one of them. He’d been more than happy to protect them. But most of all, the Village Guard had made it possible for him to get to know Gray again, to rekindle their friendship as they worked and trained together daily. 

He hoped the dragon slayers wouldn't feel his absence too much. He didn’t like to create more work for others. 

He exited the building and looked back once more, saying a silent goodbye and thank you to everyone before making his way towards the orphanage. 

Anna was outside hanging up laundry, her blonde hair up in a bun as loose tendrils danced in the wind. Children played near her, and as they recognized him, they eyed him with interest, hoping he would show them some of his fire magic as he’d done countless times before. 

“Natsu, Natsu! You promised you’d spell out my name next time you came!” a young girl who looked to be no more than six years old tugged at his pants, trying to get his attention. 

Natsu kneeled by her and asked, “I sure did, what was your name?” He pretended to think about it, “It’s Bertha, right?” 

He almost laughed at the way she scrunched up her little face in dismay, “No, it’s Ellie.” 

“Alright then, Ellie, here you go,” Natsu focused a bit of his magic onto his fingers shaping the fire until it made letters, he wrote out her name for her, and she squealed in delight, jumping around excitedly before running off to tell the others. 

“You might not have wanted to start that, dear, they’re all going to want it now,” Anna’s eyes observed him intently, looking him over with a mother’s eyes. 

Anna had known him all his life, and she was the one person who held his secret. “What brings you by?” 

Natsu quickly grabbed some laundry from one of the many baskets and began to place it on the clothesline, clipping the edges carefully so they wouldn’t blow away. 

“You make it sound as though I never come to visit,” Natsu complained, but her shrewd glance had him eyeing the baskets intently for another item. 

“Usually you bring a friend,” Anna pointed out, “Is there something wrong?” 

“I have to go,” Natsu told her. 

“Natsu, if something is bothering you, you know you can always come to me.” 

“No, I mean, I have to go. Atlas needs me to protect Igneel while he works on something. I’m leaving in a few hours.” At least he hoped he had that long, Atlas had been very impatient so far. “I just wanted to say goodbye.” 

“Oh,” Anna bit her lip, but it wasn’t enough, she began to wipe at her eyes, “I don’t know what to say.” 

“I’ll be back soon,” Natsu was quick to assure her, but she only gripped him by the shoulders, looking deep into his eyes before crushing him in her arms and dissolving into sobs. She knew what he was going up against, being the only one besides the dragon slayers to have met actual dragons. 

Natsu found himself at a loss, he knew she would be upset, but he hadn’t expected this, so he let her hold him until she’d calmed down. 

“I’m sorry,” she smiled through her tears, using the edge of her white apron to dab at the corners of her eyes. “I should be comforting _you_. It’s just, as much as I’ve helped to raise many children you were the first one, and I’ve always thought of you as my son.” 

“I—” Natsu was incredibly touched by her admission, but he didn’t know how to respond, so he just hugged her again. As much as Anna had been the only mother he’d ever known, it felt somehow disrespectful to his dead mother to claim her as such. 

“Shh, I know,” Anna assured him, “Promise me you’ll be careful no matter what form you’re in.” 

Natsu nodded, letting go of her slowly. “I will.” 

“It’s okay to feel scared, sweetheart, I’d be more worried if you weren’t.” 

Natsu chuckled, “Well, in that case, you should have nothing to worry about.” 

Anna brought her hand to his cheek, “You are strong and brave, keep your wits about you, and you should be fine.” 

“Now you sound like Igneel,” he teased. 

“Well, you didn’t think he got all that on his own, did you?” Anna retorted, trying to sound more like her usual self. 

They heard crying and watched as a little boy ambled towards them surrounded by the other children, his knee bloody and his cheeks wet. Anna turned towards the little boy, and Natsu knew it was time for him to leave. 

“Goodbye, Anna.” 

“Come back to us,” She demanded quietly before waving and returning her attention to her charge. 

Natsu watched her for a few moments, remembering times when he’d been that little boy and smiling. She’d always taken good care of him, sometimes even fighting against Igneel when she didn’t agree with his punishments. He could only hope that his efforts would somehow help to bring peace, so no more women like her would have to spend their lives caring for the ones left behind by all the violence this war had wrought. 

And now, with his second goodbye over and done with that left only one. Gray. He was nowhere near ready to talk to his boyfriend, but he had to soldier on. He made his way towards the field, dreading the next encounter with every step he took. 

“What are you still doing down here? Gray left for the field ages ago.” 

Natsu stopped at Lyon’s question, facing him. He scratched his head, “Listen, can I talk to you about something?” 

“So I was right, something _is_ going on with you,” Lyon muttered. 

“No, it’s just I have to —,” Natsu never got to finish his sentence. He was assailed by an unexpected wave of panic. 

_What the hell?_

The panic only deepened, and Natsu rushed towards the field, fearing the worst when he heard a loud roar which he instantly recognized. 

Lyon chased after him, not sure what was going on but reacting to a roar so close to town. 

_Damn it, Atlas. Why couldn’t you wait in the fucking cave, as we agreed?_

O-o 

Gray had missed Natsu the night before, after two nights sleeping together he had sort of taken it for granted that they would continue to do so every night. But he hadn’t seen Natsu at all since their date and Erza hadn’t really let up all day, so he’d never had a chance to sneak out to see him. 

The newest guards had been given the option to live in the barracks temporarily. A perk from Erza for their allegiance. It was undoubtedly a step up from the camps with indoor plumbing and food both provided and available at all hours. Several people had taken her up on it. 

Unfortunately for the guards, she’d also decided there should be at least one guard at the barracks at night to deal with any issues that might arise. With all the dragon slayers busy it had fallen to him and Lyon to stay at the barracks with the new recruits that night. Which meant he’d spent the night trying to avoid Juvia’s shy advances. 

Lyon had tried to help, attempting to talk to Juvia about where she was from and how she’d gotten to Talos but she would only answer him in monosyllables and after a small fight had broken out between two men from different camps, Lyon remained in the other side of the room, leaving Gray to deal with the lovesick girl on his own. 

Gray acted aloof, pretended to read a book, tried to start conversations with others, but no matter what he did, she continued to talk to him, and he didn’t have the heart to mistreat her, knowing that’s what she was used to. 

He decided to talk to Natsu, he didn’t care if people knew about them, Sting and Rogue didn’t precisely flaunt their relationship, but most people in the village realized the two were together and no one seemed to care. Why would they be any different? 

So when Lyon had mentioned seeing Natsu at Erza’s office and that he wanted to meet him at the field, Gray had rushed over to Erza’s office, hoping to catch him there. 

It was ridiculous, he knew he shouldn’t act so needy, but after the previous night, he just wanted to see him, maybe sneak a kiss or two before Natsu had to go off on patrol. 

He soon arrived at Erza’s office, but Natsu had already left, and Erza was in a foul mood. She wouldn’t even look at him when she demanded to know why he wasn’t training the recruits. It made him feel wary, like something was wrong. 

Then there had been the twinges he’d felt in his head throughout the morning, snippets of emotions that were not his own, but were a part of him regardless. After his talk with Natsu, he now understood that it was related to their connection, this bond he and Natsu shared. 

So he also knew that Natsu was unhappy about something. All these things together combined to create a feeling of anxiety that he just couldn’t escape. 

Gray had to see Natsu, had to know what was happening that was causing him to feel this way. So he did the only thing he could, defied Erza’s order and headed for their field instead, as fast as he could. 

He’d expected to see Natsu there waiting for him. Had wanted to watch as his boyfriend’s green eyes lit up at seeing him, to rejoice as Natsu’s smile widened to almost blinding levels but what was awaiting him was nothing like what he would have ever expected. He fell to his knees, his mind instantly reliving the worst day of his life, the one he only faced in his worst nightmares. 

Deliora stared back at him, or so Gray believed. It was hard to make out any real features inside the blazing fire. He experienced each and every moment of that last morning, and once he remembered his parents' sacrifice, he stood up, determined to show no weakness to this monster. 

The last time the two had met, he’d been a defenseless child but no longer. He had trained for years and had grown into a powerful mage, maybe not as strong as a dragon slayer but strong enough to face his demons. 

And he would make him pay, for taking everything away from him. His hatred burned bright, rage fueling his magic. He glared at the dragon, getting into his ice make stance and quickly planning out his attack, knowing he could not let this dragon get any closer to the village. 

He tried to call out to Natsu with his mind, to let him know the village was in trouble and the dragon slayers were needed, but he wasn’t sure whether Natsu heard him, his control over the bond still tenuous at best. 

The dragon continued to study him from across the field but made no move towards him. 

“DELIORA!” 

“I’m not Deliora, my name is Atlas,” the dragon replied, addressing Gray calmly. 

But Gray never heard him. He’d already begun his assault, too caught up in the past he’d never been able to get over. The righteous anger he’d felt when he’d attacked Happy years earlier was nothing compared to what he felt now, not when his real enemy was in front of him. 

_Ice-Make: Freezer Lance_

_Ice-Make: Arrows_

_Ice-Make: Gungnir_

_Ice-Make: Crescent Blades_

Gray cast spell after spell, but no matter how much ice he produced, none of it was able to even touch the dragon’s intense flames, melting well before reaching him. He took a deep breath and cast one final spell. 

_Ice-Make: Cold Excalibur_

He gripped the ice sword firmly and ran towards the dragon. 

The dragon came to life in front of him, roaring its displeasure but still not unleashing his fire. The vibrations blasted Gray back roughly, although he managed to remain upright by setting a hand down on the grass for support. Not dissuaded he ran towards the dragon again. 

“Gray, stop it!” Gray startled as Wendy appeared before him, her expression concerned. He gaped at her. 

He wiped his face, confused by the wetness he felt on his fingers. 

“Get out of my way,” Gray growled, but as he looked up, he saw Sting, Rogue, and Gajeel had now joined Wendy. 

“It’s not Deliora, Gray,” Gajeel told him quietly, “This is Natsu’s dragon, Atlas. He would never hurt you.” 

“I’ll be the judge of that, Metalhead,” Atlas snapped, clearly irritated by Gray’s antics. 

“What are you all doing here?” Gray asked, confused by their presence in the field. Natsu had wanted to meet him here, why were _they_ here? 

“I asked you to wait in the cave,” Gray turned to see Natsu approaching with Lyon, both of them running. 

“You knew I was going to talk to him here, what were you trying to prove?” Gray could hear the rage in Natsu’s voice and was surprised to see the dragon looking almost embarrassed by the scolding. 

“I wasn’t trying to do anything, you asked for time to say goodbye, and I gave it to you, now we have to go. I’ve already been away for far too long, and it will take us two days to get there.” 

Natsu ignored the dragon’s words, opting to observe the other dragon slayers, looking from one face to the other and apparently not liking what he saw, “In fact, what are you all doing here? We’d already said goodbye at the cave,” 

“We’re coming too,” Sting came forward, always the first to take action. 

“No, absolutely not, you need to stay here and protect the town.” 

“No offense Natsu, but if we don’t win there, then it won’t matter whether we remain here or not.” Rogue pointed out. 

“Besides, they haven’t seen what we can do when we fight together,” Sting grinned, punching his fist into the palm of his other hand. 

“This isn’t some kind of game,” Natsu yelled, “Don’t you remember what Atlas told you?” 

“You think we don’t know that?” Sting demanded, “We can take care of ourselves, Natsu, our dragons taught us too.” 

“We know you want to protect us,” Wendy interrupted the two before they could get into an argument, “that Igneel made you some sort of promise when you were younger, but you can’t make that choice for us. We want to help too, they’re our dragons, they’re our family.” 

Gajeel simply added, “There’s nothing you can do about it, Salamander. Our minds are made up, and Atlas has already agreed to take us with you. Happy will stay in the cave and take care of the patrols.” 

Natsu was glaring at Atlas with a fury Gray had never seen him exhibit before, and the dragon was actually looking away. 

Gray didn’t really understand anything that was happening. He had calmed down enough to acknowledge that despite the similarities, this dragon wasn’t Deliora. Although he still didn’t like the way he was looking at him. Lyon had reached him and was standing by his side, watching him worriedly. 

“So you’re all going, huh?” Lyon asked the dragon slayers, sounding overly cheerful as if he were acting out what he thought the appropriate reaction should be to the situation in the hopes that Gray would emulate him. “It’s sure going to be quiet around here without you.” 

That managed to get through to Gray as nothing else had yet, and he confronted Natsu, “Go? Go where? What’s he talking about?” 

Gray watched Natsu’s body tense, and he began to feel Natsu’s emotions bombard him. Fear, sadness, self-loathing, determination, and a host of others he couldn’t even begin to interpret. 

“No, you can’t be leaving,” Gray pleaded, “You can’t seriously be considering joining the war. Please tell me this is some sort of joke.” 

“I’m sorry,” Natsu looked miserable, but Gray didn’t care, he was hurt, and he was angry so when he heard Natsu’s next words he lost it, “I have to go, they need me.” 

“What about me? _I_ need you,” Gray pushed him hard, lashing out as much as he dared, wanting Natsu to hurt for what he was doing to them. “Or does that not matter anymore now that your precious dragon is here?” 

“Come on, that’s not fair, and you know it,” Gray could see Natsu fighting to keep control of himself, and it angered him even more because on some level Gray knew he was acting unreasonably, that Natsu didn’t _want_ to leave him. 

“The dragons will kill you,” Gray cried out, visions of the dead bodies he’d seen in Isvan clouding his reason. 

“They can try,” Natsu tried to grin but failed miserably, making it look more like a grimace than anything even remotely reassuring. “I’ll be safe, Princess, I promise. I’ll be back before you know it and we can pick up where we left off.” 

“I just got you, Natsu,” Gray could hear himself whimpering, but he didn’t care how he sounded, “Please don’t go, I can’t lose you to them too.” 

“You’ll never lose me. “ 

“You don’t know that,” Gray protested. 

“Why won’t you understand? Atlas and Igneel are my family, Gray, I have to help them and others like them. They’ve been fighting for us for so long.” 

“I’m your family, too,” Gray wept, losing all control of his emotions as he began to understand that Natsu wouldn’t stay no matter what he said. 

“I’m sorry,” Natsu’s voice broke, and Gray saw he was crying too, “I have to go.” 

Natsu tried to put his arms around him, but Gray fought him off stubbornly, still angry that he refused to stay with him. 

“Please Gray, I don’t want to leave things like this.” 

“Gray, you’re being childish,” Lyon chimed in, angering Gray further because he knew it was the truth. 

He could see the pleading look on Natsu’s face, the tears that still flowed down his cheeks, could even feel what Natsu was feeling through their bond and yet he couldn’t seem to make himself stop. If they stayed like this, Natsu would have to come back and fix things, wouldn’t he? 

“You’re going to regret this,” Lyon warned him, continuing to tell him things he already knew. 

Gray watched in shock as Natsu removed his scarf from around his neck and offered it to him. 

“Keep this safe for me, will you?” Gray could only gape at him uncomprehendingly. Natsu never took his scarf off. 

Natsu came closer and wrapped it around Gray’s neck, surrounding him in his smell, “It’s the second most important thing in the world to me.” Natsu smiled weakly, leaving no doubt as to what the first one was. “This way I'll always be close to you.” 

“I, I don’t have anything to give you,” Gray stammered, not realizing that with that statement he'd already accepted his fate. 

“You’re all that I really want,” Natsu’s smile was sad as he placed the palm of his hand over Gray’s heart, leaving it in place for a minute. 

“Natsu —” 

“Shh,” Natsu kissed him softly, mouth closed but heart wide open. “I’ll see you soon, Princess.” 

Gray couldn’t help but frown at the nickname, but he stared into Natsu’s face, memorizing every detail. After one last kiss, Natsu turned around and joined the other dragon slayers who had already climbed on Atlas. His flames covered the slayers but seemed to cause them no damage. 

The dragon slayers waved at him and Lyon, but Natsu only looked dejected. 

And as Atlas took off, Gray collapsed to the ground, his breath coming in gasping sobs as he watched yet another dragon take away what he loved most. 

He felt strong arms surround him, trying to console him, but they were the wrong arms, and in his heart, he knew that until he saw Natsu return, nothing would feel alright again. 

He closed his eyes, and in his mind, he suddenly heard the same words Natsu had left him with once before. 

_I will always come for you when you need me_. 

And Gray held on to them, praying that just like last time they would be true. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: We’ve finally reached the half-way point! Don’t worry, I won’t extend the war stuff for too long, as I have it planned there should only be two chapters directly dealing with it, one will be in Natsu’s POV, the other in Gray’s. At least that’s the plan, this is one of the gray areas that hadn’t already been written.
> 
>  
> 
> I’m not sure how I feel about this chapter, truth be told it feels strange even if only because a lot of this story was written months ago. This was the first chapter that I have written from scratch since beginning to post in February and I probably should have split it in two but then I wouldn’t have been able to do the scarf prompt for the Bingo. ;)
> 
>  
> 
> Poor Gray, I felt really bad for doing this to him but he needed to relapse a little, not to mention he needs to start facing his past if he’s ever going to be able to truly move on.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16 

“You should have waited at the cave like I asked,” Natsu tried to keep his fury in check, but now that they were far enough away from Talos that he was no longer feeling Gray’s despair tearing away at him there was nothing left to keep it at bay. 

“You hurt my mate Atlas,” Natsu seethed, “You made him relive a traumatic experience and probably rekindled his hatred of dragons, something he’d been working against. You made everything worse!” 

“I just wanted to show you he could accept us now that he was older,” Atlas hung his head contritely, “How was I supposed to know he’d react that way?” 

“Deliora burned down his village and killed his parents. What the hell did you expect?” 

Natsu could hear Atlas muttering something under his breath, but he couldn’t catch what he was saying. “What?” 

“I said I’m sorry I’m only going to make it worse,” Atlas repeated a bit more loudly. 

“What do you mean by that?” Natsu demanded, still trying to calm himself down. It had been a very emotional day, and he was just about at his limit of what he could take. 

“I need you to transform, Gajeel weighs a ton, I can’t fly all of you the whole way.” 

“Transform? What do you mean?” Wendy asked, looking at Natsu with concern. 

“Are you serious right now?” Natsu complained loudly. First Gray and now this, if he didn’t know any better, he would’ve thought that Atlas was purposefully forcing his hand. 

Atlas only nodded, and now that Natsu examined him more closely he noticed the strain his uncle had been trying to hide. It appeared he was more beat up than Natsu had initially thought and he felt guilty for yelling at him when he’d only been trying to help. He had no idea what Atlas had been through in the last two years, not really, and he had an idea his uncle had no plans to tell him. 

“Find a place to land,” Natsu requested, resigning himself to the inevitable. The moment of truth had finally arrived. Maybe this would at least go better than the fiasco in the field. He felt a hand squeezing his shoulder and looked back to see Rogue giving him a reassuring smile which only made him feel worse for having lied to him in the first place. 

He could feel all of the dragon slayers’ curious eyes on him. For them, it was just a distraction, something to keep them from thinking about the decision they had just made, but for Natsu, it was something he’d feared for most of his life. 

Natsu thought about the best way to tell them his secret, should he tell them first or should he just transform as he’d done with Rogue. He wasn’t sure, but he decided to try talking first as he didn’t want to startle Wendy. 

Atlas found a clearing away from any human settlements and landed there. All the dragons slayers jumped off his back, wanting to give him a rest. They sat on the grass near him and looked at Natsu, waiting for him to say something. 

“There’s something about me that I’ve never told you about,” Natsu started and then paused not quite knowing how to continue. 

He could feel their eyes on him, and all words just escaped him, he could only stare at them wide-eyed. 

“Just tell them, Natsu,” Atlas urged, “Trust in the bonds you’ve forged over the years.” 

Natsu nodded slowly. “I’m uhm, I’m not like you guys.” 

“What are you talking about?” Gajeel growled growing annoyed as Natsu remained quiet, “Just spit it out already.” 

“Gajeel! Just give him a minute,” Rogue chastised, once again giving Natsu an encouraging look. “Just show them, as you did me.” 

Sting narrowed his eyes, “You know what this is about, Rogue?” 

Rogue could only wince at the displeasure that was coming in through their bond. He knew it wasn’t a good idea to keep secrets from Sting, but he’d made the decision to help Natsu protect Gray, and from what he’d seen of Gray’s reaction on the field he was convinced he’d been right. He would just need to make Sting understand that. 

“Whatever it is Natsu, you can tell us,” Wendy smiled at him, her eyes warm and trusting. 

Natsu decided to take Rogue’s advice, he closed his eyes and called upon the magic that allowed him to transform into his dragon form. He kept his eyes closed, not wanting to see their initial reactions. He heard a few gasps and opened his eyes slowly, looking down at his friends. 

Wendy and Rogue had both moved closer to him, Rogue as a sign of solidarity, Wendy in curiosity but Sting and Gajeel were watching him with something akin to dismay. 

“You can turn into a dragon, that’s so cool!” Wendy cheered looking even more in awe of Natsu than before. 

“Wait a minute,” Gajeel declared appearing confused, “Isn’t being able to turn into a dragon a bad thing? I thought you guys said that only happened to the renegade dragon slayers that lost their minds.” 

“Well, I mean it’s not like he had much of one to begin with,” Rogue joked as he tried to break up some of the tension that was brewing between them. 

“Natsu isn’t a dragon slayer,” Atlas explained, “He never was. He’s what we’ve called a hybrid, his father is a dragon, but his mother was a human.” 

“You lied to us,” Sting glared at Natsu looking incredibly hurt, “This whole time we’ve known you—” 

“That’s enough out of you Sting,” Atlas growled, “Natsu didn’t have a choice, his father forbade him from telling anyone.” 

“I’m sorry,” Natsu tried to lock his gaze with Sting, but he refused to meet it. Instead, he walked off in a huff, and no one attempted to stop him. 

“So it’s not a spell?” Rogue asked, finally understanding he hadn’t been told the whole truth. 

Natsu shook his head, “It’s something I’ve been able to do since I was young, I just couldn’t control it very well.” 

“I don’t get it, why would your father forbid you from telling anyone?” Wendy asked, “Who is your father, anyway?” 

“Igneel,” Natsu replied, “Atlas is my uncle, you already know my mom was Porlyusica, a healer from Talos. Igneel forbade me from telling anyone because the one time I told a human about what I was, he hurt me.” 

“Gray?” Wendy’s brow wrinkled as she remembered the story Gray had told her at the orphanage, “I think I’m beginning to understand a little, that time you met when you were little, is that what happened?” 

Natsu nodded, “I tried to tell him what I was but he didn’t believe me, it was right after Deliora had destroyed his village and I had no control over the transformation so I couldn’t show him, it was a disaster.” 

“Oh, Natsu. That must have been terrible for you!” Wendy attempted to hug him, and it made him feel good to know that she at least accepted him. 

“I’m sorry, Rogue,” Natsu felt miserable, Rogue had been so supportive, and now he’d learned that Natsu had lied to him. 

“It’s alright, I think I understand. I just wish you’d trusted us with the truth before.” Rogue noticed Natsu looking towards where Sting had walked off to and sighed. 

“I’ll talk to him once he’s calmed down,” Rogue offered, but Natsu shook his head, “I’ve caused you enough trouble. I’ll talk to him.” 

Gajeel walked up to him and studied him carefully, walking around him to examine his body before snorting, “Kind of a runt for a dragon, aren’t you?” 

“I’m part human,” Natsu shrugged, ignoring the taunt. “Igneel thinks I’ll still grow more.” 

“I don’t understand how this is possible,” Wendy questioned as she studied Natsu. 

“I’m curious about that myself,” Rogue admitted. 

“Before you ask, dragons can’t usually turn into other creatures, that requires a grasp of transformation magic few would bother to achieve but Igneel and I have always loved magic,” Atlas explained, “So when Igneel wanted to live among humans to help him decide what to do about the war, we set about devising a spell that would allow him to do so temporarily. Once he got to Talos, he met Porlyusica and quickly realized she was his mate. He couldn’t leave her, so he continued to power the spell until she died giving birth to Natsu.” 

“You need to understand that none of this has ever been a choice for Natsu, it’s just who he is. So whatever you think about him, you must sort it out now, “Atlas growled, “Once we get to where we’re going we can’t afford to be divided.” 

The dragon slayers nodded in understanding and set off to look for Sting, leaving Natsu with Atlas. 

“Were you really tired or was this just your way of getting everything out in the open?” 

Atlas looked off into the distance, “The decision was out of your hands once they chose to come along. This way you’ll at least have a chance to deal with it on your own terms. With things being the way they are, there’s no way anyone outside of the family can know what you are. They will assume you’re a renegade. That’s why you’re going to remain a dragon for as long as we’re there.” 

“I’m going to have to stay like this the whole time?” Natsu protested, although his uncle’s words made sense he hadn’t considered that possibility. 

“What did you think, that you’d be able to protect Igneel posing as a dragon slayer?” Atlas roared in amusement, “Your magic is much stronger in this form, and you know it.” 

Natsu frowned, now that Atlas put it that way it did sound stupid to think that, but the idea of exclusively keeping to his dragon form made him nervous. He’d never done it for more than a couple of days at a time when he was younger, and even then Natsu had felt strong instincts working at him, instincts that were very different from what he was used to. His thoughts drifted to Gray, and he promised himself that he would return to him no matter what it took. 

The dragon slayers were gone for hours, and Natsu was freaking out by the time they returned, bearing several kills for them to eat. Sting approached Natsu while the other slayers set about preparing their meal. 

“Can we talk?” 

“Sure,” Natsu walked away from the others, knowing that Sting would prefer to speak privately. 

“I’m sorry, I overreacted,” Sting apologized quietly, “Rogue told me I was out of line and I guess he’s right. It just feels like every time we’re getting closer again, something happens to create more distance between us.” 

“I’m sorry too,” Natsu confessed, “I know Igneel forbade me from saying anything, but I should have fought him harder. I was scared of how you would all react when you found out. You guys are all I have, I didn’t want to risk losing you because of something I had no control over.” 

“You’re such an idiot sometimes.” 

Natsu gawked at Sting not sure of what he meant. 

“However it happened, you gave us all a family, and we’ll always be grateful to you for that. It might not be typical, but it was perfect for us and much more fun than living in the orphanage.” 

Sting gave him one of the mischievous grins that were often the precursor to them getting in trouble as kids, “I do feel cheated though. Can you imagine the things we could have gotten away with if I’d known?” 

Natsu started to laugh until he remembered how when he’d met Gray he’d dreamed of doing just that. Going on adventures, flying for as long as he could hold his transformation and then exploring wherever they ended up. 

“What’s the matter?” 

“Nothing, you just reminded me of something,” Natsu dismissed Sting’s concern. 

“Judging by how miserable you looked, I’m going to assume it had something to do with Gray. It might take time, but he’ll come around. I definitely understand your hesitation a lot better now, but you have to remember, he loves you.” 

“Yeah,” Natsu agreed, but his tone was muted. 

“Yes,” Sting shoved him playfully as he repeated the word more firmly, “Now all you have to worry about is getting back home in one piece so you can make him yours.” 

“Can I really do that without telling him the truth?” 

Sting had no answer to that, so he wisely changed the subject. “Do you think of yourself as a dragon or a human?” 

“Neither I guess, if I had to identify as anything at all it would be dragon slayer, even though I’m not one. I’ve always felt like I belonged with you guys.” 

Natsu stared off into space, his thoughts once again on what it would mean for him to remain a dragon for an extended period. Igneel had always been against it, but he’d never explained why. 

“What’s wrong?” Sting’s eyes flickered uneasily at Natsu’s expression. 

“Atlas said I have to stay like this for the entire time we’re there.” 

“Makes sense I guess, maybe you should change back now, enjoy your last night as a human while you can.” 

Natsu changed back with Sting watching him, “Man, that’s gonna take some getting used to.” 

“That’s what Rogue said!” Natsu grinned and ran off towards the others feeling better than he had before. He cackled as Sting chased after him, hurling good-natured insults at him. 

The dragon slayers played and laughed doing their best to let Natsu know they still saw him the same as before. Atlas supervised, feeling relieved that this at least had gone well. 

“Alright, time for bed. We leave at dawn.” 

O-o 

Gajeel rode on Natsu while the other three dragon slayers remained on Atlas. Natsu had to agree with Atlas, Gajeel did weigh a ton, but they’d managed to have a good talk along the way. Gajeel accepted taking over Natsu’s role as their leader while he remained in his dragon form. 

Atlas had warned the dragon slayers to be careful who they trusted as it was still felt renegades were hiding within their ranks. He suggested they should stick to Irene as much as they could. He also promised Natsu that he would train with him as much as possible for the fights ahead. 

It was night time when they arrived, but they could still hear loud noises that could only signal fighting. To their surprise, Atlas led them away from it and into the back entrance of a cave not dissimilar from their own. They followed him through its winding passages, all their senses going into overdrive as they detected a myriad of new scents. Natsu’s heart raced in both excitement and apprehension at seeing his father for the first time in two years. 

They bumped into a woman first, one that smelled eerily familiar even in the relative darkness. 

“Where the hell have you been?” the woman smacked the giant dragon on his side, “We’ve been worried sick. Igneel feared the worst.” 

Atlas smiled nervously, “Just went to fetch a few things.” 

Sting, never one to remain quiet, added with a big grin and a wave, “Hi, we’re the things.” 

“Sting Eucliffe? I swear to the Gods Atlas, if I see my daughter with you, I’ll kill you myself,” Irene smacked the dragon again. “What were you thinking? You know how Igneel feels about this.” 

“I had to do it, Irene, we’ve talked about this. We’re running out of options,” Atlas protested. 

Irene studied the dragon sadly, “I’m not going to argue with you, I imagine you did what you felt was right. Just realize that it will have consequences, especially when Igneel sees Natsu.” 

“He’ll see I’m right,” Atlas muttered stubbornly although it sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than anyone else. 

“For your sake, I hope you’re right,” Irene moved towards the dragon slayers looking them over intently. “Let me look at all of you, you’ve grown so much! How’s my Erza?” 

“Bossy,” Gajeel retorted, and although Rogue glared at him, Irene only laughed heartily. 

She looked at Natsu for a few minutes and offered him a smile that appeared so similar to Erza’s that it hurt. He tried to return it, and she placed her hand on his snout, petting him briefly. 

“I have to go out and do some rounds, you kids might as well come with me so I can start showing you what you’ll need to know,” 

“Even Wendy?” Natsu asked, glancing at the youngest dragon slayer with concern. 

“She’ll be fine dear, I won’t let anything happen to her,” Irene smiled warmly before calling for Belserion. Once he arrived all the dragon slayers climbed on and took off, leaving Natsu to stare after them. 

“Don’t worry so much kid, Irene is as tough as they come and although you might not see them, two shadow dragons are tailing them. They’ll be fine. We might as well get this over with,” Atlas began to move through the many passages until they reached the entrance to a large chamber where Igneel stood, looking more enraged than Natsu had ever seen him. 

Igneel glanced at the other dragons in the room that Natsu hadn’t even had a chance to notice and asked them to leave them for the moment. They all made their way out of the chamber giving a small bow to Igneel as they exited and that surprised Natsu as well, especially as the majority were not fire dragons. 

He’d always known his father was the King of the Fire Dragons, but it had never dawned on him that the title actually meant something to others. 

Igneel nodded to Atlas, and his front claws glowed, a purple magic circle appearing in front of him as he created a barrier that would keep their words from being overheard. 

“What is Natsu doing here? Have you lost your mind?” Igneel roared at Atlas, ignoring Natsu for the moment, but there was no denying the fury in his roar. 

“You had no right to go behind my back, this decision was not yours to make, you are not his father, I am.” 

“I’ve been around for him just as much as you have.” 

“Then you should have left him at home where he would have been safe.” 

“I told you, I need to work on a counterspell,” Atlas replied calmly, “I can’t do that if I have to watch your ass all the time, who else would I trust to protect you?” 

“Damn it, Atlas, no more. Magic is what got us into this mess!” 

“And it will get us out. If we can neutralize the renegade threat, we can negotiate the rest. We all want to go home, Igneel. Deliora hates your guts, he’s never going to agree to a truce.” 

“That’s where you’re wrong, brother. He’s already agreed to talk with me.” 

“Surely you’re not thinking of going, it’s a trap. Let me guess, he asked you to go alone?” 

“No, actually, he demanded you be present, says you’re the only one he trusts, which of course we couldn’t do because you disappeared.” 

“He wants me?” Atlas’ laugh filled the large chamber, “Then it’s definitely a trap, he hates me even more than he hates you.” 

Natsu stood there, not knowing how to feel. His father hadn’t even glanced his way, and he was baffled by this whole conversation. It was like being a child again, Igneel and Atlas off doing their own thing while Natsu sat alone wishing he could be like them, except this time it wasn’t their usual pointless bickering. He could hear the anger behind their words, and it worried him because they sounded much too comfortable with it. 

“I wanted to come,” Natsu finally spoke up, figuring if nothing else it would redirect Igneel’s anger. 

Igneel finally looked at him, and Natsu was shocked to notice how much his father had changed. He looked older and tired. Like Atlas, his body was covered in scars, and his eyes looked like they had seen horrible things. 

“I never wanted this for you,” Igneel still sounded angry, but he hugged his son and looked him over, “but now you’re here, and it can’t be helped.” 

“You’ve grown since the last time I saw you like this,” Igneel noted with a smile, “Doing the nightly patrols must have made you much stronger .” 

“I did my best,” Natsu peered at Atlas hoping that he wouldn’t go into how he’d expanded their territory or mention he’d been attacked. 

Atlas met his gaze and shook his head slightly, “As far as I saw, the town looked just as we left it, although the population seems to have grown.” 

“I’m sure you did, I expected nothing less,” Igneel ignored Atlas in favor of praising Natsu, “Tell me, have things with Gray improved since I left?” 

“Somewhat?” Natsu covered Atlas in return, not wanting to add to the tension that existed between the two brothers. 

“Gray knows what we are to each other, and we have an understanding of sorts, but he doesn’t know what I am, and he wasn’t happy I left.” 

“Well, that’s progress I suppose,” Igneel muttered thoughtfully, “We can do more catching up later, but there are some things you need to know now that you’re here. You might have noticed that the other dragons were treating me differently.” 

Natsu nodded, “It’s because you’re the King of the Red Dragons, right?” 

“I wish it was,” Igneel bowed his head, “Our family, we’re the last royal dragons left. All the others were killed by the renegades or Deliora’s dragons. The renegades seem to think royal dragon blood is the most powerful of them all. Not true by the way, the only thing that makes us any different is the magical knowledge we’ve acquired over the centuries, and that can’t be transferred by blood. As for Deliora, he just wants power, as he’s always done.” 

“With all their royals gone, the remaining dragons have adopted me as their leader. I’m telling you this because once the enemy realizes who you are, you can expect to be heavily targeted as well. So if you plan to protect me, you’re going to have to learn how to fight properly first. Atlas can start your training as he will be responsible for you while you’re here,” Igneel fixed Atlas with a glare that screamed he would hear no arguments on the matter and Atlas nodded in agreement. 

“I imagine Grandine and the others already know you’re here and will be glad to see you as well as their own children,” Igneel managed a genuine smile for the first time since Natsu arrived. 

“How did you know?” Natsu asked curiously even as he felt himself getting excited at the thought of seeing the rest of his family. 

Igneel rolled his eyes, “You’ve been human for too long, you forget our sense of smell is much stronger, but even if it wasn’t we raised you to be a family. There was no way they would have stayed behind if you were heading into danger. Atlas might very well have damned you all.” 

“Think you can find them on your own? I need to speak to your uncle for a moment.” 

Natsu glanced at Atlas, but the dragon only gave him a bored look so he assumed everything would be fine. He left the room and set about finding his friends. 

“I was against this plan of yours from the beginning, but since you’ve taken the choice out of my hands you will need to work as fast as you can,” Igneel growled, “We both know what could happen if he stays in that form for too long.” 

“I’ll do my best.” 

“No Atlas, you will do better than that, and trap or not we _will_ meet with Deliora. If we want to save what’s left of our kind, we can no longer afford to ignore any path that can bring an end to this nightmare.” 

O-o 

_Three months later_

Natsu flew out of the cave carrying Sting on his back. They’d been given a quick search and rescue mission to locate some dragon slayers that hadn’t returned. Natsu was just happy to see his friend, he hadn’t really seen much of the dragon slayers since he’d arrived. 

He’d spent the first few weeks following Igneel around during the day and training with Atlas in the evenings, moving on to Belserion once Atlas felt he’d taught him all he could. Irene, along with Genya, another dragon slayer she trusted, had been training the Talos dragon slayers since they’d arrived. 

To hear Sting tell it, Irene was even scarier than Erza, but she was very sharp, and they had all learned a lot from her. Atlas had been brutal in his training, but Natsu felt much more confident in his abilities than he had before, even though his uncle had to heal him extensively to ready him for the next day’s session. 

“Do you know this dragon slayer we’re looking for?” Natsu asked curiously. After a few dragons had been attacked by the renegades while they slept, the dragons had demanded the slayers living area be moved away from theirs. 

“Yeah, she’s about our age. She’s an Ice Dragon Slayer, you’ll love her, “ Sting teased but immediately shut up when Natsu became quiet. 

Sting changed the subject slightly, “She’s friendly with Wendy, her name is Utari. She went out with Oliver, another dragon slayer, this morning, but neither of them returned.” 

“How are the others?” Natsu flew low extending his senses to detect any other dragons in the area. 

“They’re fine, I guess. It’s a really weird scene, man. Although, everyone loves Wendy, of course,” Sting laughed. 

“Of course,” Natsu laughed along with him. The dragons mostly kept to themselves, and since Natsu spent most of his time shadowing Igneel, he didn’t get to see his friends as often as he wished, so missions like this were the only time he really got to spend time with them. 

“But, it’s like no one trusts each other,” Sting tried to explain, “Like the other day Oliver came back, and he was all covered in blood, and everyone just gave him a wide berth like he was contagious or something. The blood ended up being all his, but people were scared, almost like they think this whole renegade business is contagious or something.” 

“But it isn’t!” Natsu protested, and Sting stopped him. 

“I know that, I’ll tell you something else, they don’t like Weisslogia at all, or me for that matter,” Sting said more quietly. 

“That doesn’t make any sense, neither one of you would ever hurt anyone,” Natsu was quick to defend his friends. 

“I don’t know about that, I mean it’s what we’re trained for isn’t it?” Sting sighed, “It’s nothing to do with that, though. There’s this rumor going around that it was the White Dragons that started this whole thing, I’ve tried to ask Weisslogia about it but he just… anyway, I guess maybe there might be some truth to it.” 

“That’s stupid, even if that were true, the others followed soon enough!” Natsu complained, outraged that anyone would mistreat his friends. 

He was still worked up when he caught it, a scent of blood mixed with fear wafted into his nose. Natsu began to growl before he even noticed what he was doing, and he flew towards the smell. 

“Natsu?” Sting looked down at his friend worriedly. This was something they’d all noticed when they went on jobs with him. Natsu was changing, it wasn’t very pronounced, but they had lived with him for years, so it was easy for them to pick out, especially now that they didn’t see him as often. His responses were sharper and more dragon-like, not at all like human Natsu would react. 

“Huh?” 

“Is everything okay?” Sting found himself tightening his grip on his friend as he sped up beneath him. 

“I think I found them, there’s a strong scent of blood and fear in this direction. I smell two dragon slayers and at least one dragon, although I’m not sure what kind. I’m sorry, I think we’re gonna have to fight.” 

“That’s the job,” Sting responded absently, worrying about what those changes in Natsu could mean. He promised himself he’d bring it up to Atlas the next time he saw him. “When we get close, I’m gonna jump off and help the dragon slayers, you take out the dragon, okay?” 

“Got it,” Natsu agreed, his mind already going over the things he’d been taught. He flew even faster, wanting to help the dragon slayers who despite their magic, seemed to be at a disadvantage. 

It was a wood dragon, which explained why Natsu couldn’t pick his scent out easily, surrounded as they were by nature. The dragon was on the ground, his entire body made up of braided tree bark with vines growing out of different areas which he was using to attack the dragon slayers. The vines flicked around like whips even as the dragon mocked their efforts at defense. 

Natsu felt Sting jump off and use his magic to slow down his descent, allowing Natsu to speed up and ram the dragon while Sting checked on the dragon slayers. Natsu only had enough time to notice one of them wasn’t moving. 

The wood dragon got up quickly, attacking Natsu with his vines, wrapping them around his limbs and tightening them in an attempt to immobilize him. Natsu raised his body’s temperature drastically, coating his body in his flames and incinerating the vines into ashes that crumbled to the ground around him. He felt rage begin to consume him, and he blew out fire in an enormous cone that engulfed the other dragon. 

The wood dragon shrieked in pain even as he panicked and tried to put out the flames by rolling his body uselessly against the ground as Natsu continued to fire roar after roar at him, savoring the sound of the creature’s screams. 

He could hear Sting yelling at him to stop, that other things were catching on fire, but it sounded far away, and his mind was screaming that he needed to continue his attack until his enemy was dead. 

He heard Sting asking one of the dragon slayers if they could use their magic. Natsu was starting to come out of his frenzy and could see the damage his attacks had caused, but there was nothing he could do, it was his fire, and he couldn’t eat it. Natsu turned to grab the slayers to fly them to safety when he noticed a young girl get into a fighting stance and call out a spell. 

_Ice Dragon Roar_

Ice spewed out of her mouth and coated everything around them, putting out most of the small fires that had started from the dragon’s thrashing and even though it was nothing like Gray’s ice it brought back a conversation they’d had about dragons when Gray had first arrived at Talos. 

_“Have you killed any?”_

_“No, and I rather hope I never have to. Killing is not something I enjoy.”_

Natsu threw up as he stared in shock at the smoking remains of the wood dragon he’d just killed, the easiest possible matchup for him out of all the dragons they could’ve encountered. Sting rushed over to him checking to see if he was alright. 

“Natsu! What’s wrong?” 

Natsu couldn’t help the fear that gripped him as he remembered one other thing Gray had said in the heat of a fight. 

_“You’re not a kid anymore Natsu, you need to get this idea out of your head that dragons are anything but beasts intent on destruction.”_

Had Gray been right all along? He’d killed that dragon without giving it a second thought, and with a sinking heart he had to admit to himself he’d enjoyed it. 

“Natsu! We need to get out of here, others are coming,” Sting urged and as Natsu smelled multiple dragons headed in their direction he realized Sting was right. This had been a search and rescue mission, they needed to get back home quickly before they found themselves in a fight where they would be at a severe disadvantage. 

The three dragon slayers climbed onto his back, and he flew them away as fast as his wings could manage, forcing his mind to focus only on getting away. The dragons had caught their scent and were giving chase, and Natsu found he had to fight his own instincts, which were demanding he turn around and fight. 

Utari began to cry softly, and Natsu could only think of Wendy, and he felt shame for what he’d done. He’d taken a life callously, and it went against everything he’d ever been taught. 

He pushed his wings harder than he ever had before, determined to get the dragon slayers back to safety. The flight was bumpy, and Sting and Oliver tried to calm Utari down, whispering soothing words meant to offer comfort, but they weren’t enough to keep her from crying the whole way home. 

It made Natsu think about the dragon slayers as people for the first time. Dragons were everything he’d ever known, but for these humans, it was all new. 

What must have brought them here, to accept these overwhelming powers and use them to fight what must amount to terrifying creatures? What had they seen and done since they had acquired their powers and did they regret their choice? When all this was over, could they return to their life? Could he? 

When he returned home, what would be left of him? Would Gray still love him when he learned the things he’d done? Natsu wasn’t sure what to think, the conflict between his instincts and his mind causing him to panic. 

“Stop it, Natsu,” Sting commanded, bringing him out of his thoughts, “You did what you had to do, nothing more, nothing less.” 

“What—” 

“I’ve known you for a long time, you’re not that hard to read,” Sting reminded him, “I think you can slow down a bit, they seem to have given up.” 

Natsu slowed down a little, but he couldn’t wait to get back to the cave. Once he entered, Oliver climbed down, and Sting handed Utari over before jumping off. Natsu heard the two men whispering about the girl and moved away not knowing where to go but not wanting to remain still. 

“Natsu, wait up!” Sting chased after him, and Natsu stopped even though he refused to look at his childhood friend. 

Sting sighed, petting Natsu’s snout when he realized how worked up Natsu still was, “I don’t know what happened to you out there but — let’s just go talk to Atlas, okay?” 

Natsu nodded, leading the way to their chamber only to be stopped by a lightning dragon. 

“Highness, no dragon slayers are allowed past this point,” The lightning dragon glanced at Sting in a way that wasn’t entirely unfriendly but was decidedly wary. 

“Sting needs to speak to Atlas,” Natsu declared, moving forward and motioning Sting to follow. 

“Then, I shall come with you as well,” the dragon pronounced following behind them as another lightning dragon appeared to take his place. 

“It’s really not necessary,” Natsu insisted, frustrated by the dragon’s persistence, especially after what Sting had told him earlier. 

“It’s fine, Natsu, he’s just doing his job,” Sting shrugged it off, but Natsu could tell that it bothered him and he didn’t know what to do to help. They remained silent until they reached Atlas’ workspace which was littered with scrolls and all manner of random objects. 

“Hey Atlas,” Sting greeted him, and Natsu was grateful to see Atlas brighten up at seeing the dragon slayer. He fought the urge to gloat as the lightning dragon stationed himself outside the room. 

“What brings you both here?” Atlas peered down at them, it was unusual for him to have visitors outside of Igneel and Natsu. 

Natsu remained quiet not knowing what to say or how to bring it up, but Sting as always had no problem speaking his mind. 

“We went out on a job today, and Natsu killed a dragon, he was acting strangely.” 

“Oh, well I mean it was his first kill, that’s bound to feel strange,” Atlas pretended to study the scroll he’d been holding, trying to avoid the nagging feeling that this was the beginning of what they had been worried about.” 

“No,” Sting was quick to protest, “it’s more than that, Atlas!” 

Atlas took a deep breath and put a finger over his snout, motioning both of them to be quiet. Natsu saw him once again create the barrier that would allow them to speak without being overheard. 

“You have to be careful what you say around others,” Atlas chastised, “that goes for both of you. No one can know about Natsu, Sting.” 

“I know, I’m sorry, I just — we’re worried,” Sting placed his hands over his head and began to pace in the ample space, “Natsu’s like our brother and ever since he got here he’s been changing, we’ve all noticed it. And today when we were fighting that dragon it was like he was a completely different person.” 

“That’s because he wasn’t a person, he was a dragon,” Atlas peered over at Natsu who unlike Sting was standing in place looking off into space. “Natsu,” Atlas called out gruffly trying to get through to his nephew, and when Natsu finally looked up at him, he prodded, “Have you felt any differently?” 

Natsu thought about all the little things that had felt different or off, and more importantly about how he’d lost control of himself during his fight with the dragon and he could only nod. 

“I see,” Atlas sat deep in thought and Sting stopped his pacing, choosing to go over to Natsu and stand next to him. 

“Atlas will fix it, you’ll see,” Sting spoke gently, much like he had to Utari earlier and Natsu shoved him gently with his head. 

“You have to tell me when these things happen, kid,” Atlas began and his tone was serious, “Did you ever wonder why Igneel didn’t want you to stay as a dragon for long periods?” 

“Yeah, but I thought it was just because he was afraid I’d get caught,” Natsu replied. 

“That was part of it, yes, but there’s more to it than that. Your dragon side didn’t manifest until you were a few years old. It would only pop up for a short time before receding, but every time it did, there were physical changes when you changed back. Your fangs are a glaring example of that. 

As best as I can figure, it comes down to heredity, your dragon genes are in a constant battle to overwrite your human ones. Once we realized your mate was a human, we knew that we had to let your human nature be in control just in case…,” Atlas trailed off not wanting to add more worries to Natsu’s already burdened mind. 

“In case what?” Sting immediately asked what Natsu wouldn’t, trapped as he was in the certainty of what Atlas was going to say and the pain at the betrayal that came with it. 

“In case one day, he couldn’t turn back,” Atlas couldn’t shake that all the terrible things that befell his family always came back to him. He might not have caused any of this directly, but he had been the one to create the spell that allowed Igneel to transform into a human and caused all this mess. 

“I need you to tell me exactly what’s been happening and what you’ve felt so that I can try to come up with a way to counteract it, and if I can’t outright stop it at least slow it down enough to ensure you can go back to Gray as a human at the end of this.” 

“You knew about this, and you didn’t think it important enough to tell me?” Natsu reproached his uncle, even though he knew that his decision to come with him would have been no different had he known. 

“We didn’t want to scare you,” Atlas admitted, “We didn’t know for sure, we just thought we should guard against it. I will find a way to fight this, I promise.” 

“No,” Natsu replied forcefully surprising both Sting and Atlas, “You’re spread too thin as it is. You need to work on that counterspell, and I heard you’re also trying to find a way to recover the parts of the souls that Acnologia reaped from Igneel and the other dragons. Both of those are more important than this, now that I know it’s happening I can try to fight against it.” 

Sting looked at him in horror, “Are you insane? Let him help you, you don’t know the first thing about this stuff.” 

“There are a few things that I think might help,” Atlas mentioned quietly. 

“Then point me to them, and I will learn them on my own while you work on your spells.” 

Sting and Atlas both tried to talk him out of it, but he had already made up his mind. This was his battle to win or lose, and Natsu was not one to give up easily. If he had to learn magic to do it, then so be it. 

He prodded at his bond feeling only the slightest twitch in response. He had to win, he had promised Gray he would return, and that was precisely what he was going to do. 

“Sting,” Sting turned towards him, and Natsu could see from the frustrated expression on his face that his best friend already knew what he was going to ask of him and he didn’t like it in the slightest. 

“Please don’t tell the others.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: These last few weeks have been crazy and I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to update in time but I managed it. I was planning on doing only one chapter on the war in Natsu’s POV but I quickly realized it wasn’t going to happen. Not only would I never finish it in time, but there was also too much that needed to happen and I didn’t want to rush through it or have everything lose its impact because there was so much to get through. So there will be at least one more, I’m not yet sure if this will affect the number of chapters yet, we’ll see.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17 

It was Lyon who had gotten Gray to finally leave the field. Wisely avoiding the Guard headquarters, he’d led them to their shared apartment. Gray had collapsed on their sofa, crying more than he could ever remember doing since his parents’ death. The fear that this was it, the moment where he finally lost everything created a weight on his chest so massive, it felt like it would crush him. 

Lyon did his best to soothe him, to let him know that they were brothers and he was still there for him, that he would lend him his strength until Gray felt up to standing on his own once more, but it all sounded so distant. The image of Natsu and the others flying away on that beast wasn’t something he could let go of yet. And just as Lyon had predicted, Gray was horrified by how he’d acted. 

He’d been so caught up in himself that he’d refused to acknowledge the fear that had been written all over Natsu’s face or his plea for Gray to forgive him, to understand he couldn’t stay. Even worse, he’d ignored Natsu’s feelings which had been quite clearly broadcast to him through their shared bond. 

Natsu had needed to be held, to be comforted, to feel loved by Gray, but that wasn’t what he’d given him at all, and that knowledge was eating away at him. Even now, he was wearing Natsu’s most prized possession around his neck, his smell providing Gray some level of comfort. What did Natsu get from him? 

Gray had yelled at him, pushed him away, and refused to listen to anything he had to say. He’d berated him, even questioned his love. Gods, what had he — 

“Natsu’s going to be fine, Gray. They’re all going to be fine,” Lyon interrupted his thoughts, continuing to murmur his encouragement, not knowing what else to do for the boy he’d accepted as a brother so many years before. 

Gray nodded listlessly, tensing up as he heard loud knocking and Erza yelling at their front door. Lyon left him on the sofa to go deal with her. Gray listened as Lyon tried to stop Erza from coming inside, but the sound of her steps growing closer was testament enough to his failure. He heard the door close softly, and the familiar sound of Lyon’s footsteps returning. 

“Where is everyone? Why aren’t you at your posts? Just because Natsu left doesn’t give everyone the right to take off. I have dozens of recruits waiting and no one to train them, “Erza stormed into their living room, coming face to face with the sorry state Gray was in. 

Seeing that Gray was in no condition to give her any of the information she needed, she looked back at Lyon, who had just walked into the room, “What’s the matter with him?” 

Lyon grabbed the blanket they usually hung over the back of their couch and draped it over Gray, pushing him down slightly to get him to rest. He wasn’t really surprised by the lack of resistance. Once he’d settled his brother down, he grabbed his keys and motioned for Erza to follow. “Let’s talk outside.” 

Lyon closed the door quietly behind him and began to walk back to the Village Guard headquarters. “It wasn’t just Natsu that left, although that _is_ what has Gray so upset. They all did, Erza. Sting, Rogue, Gajeel, and Wendy, they left too. They all climbed atop a flaming dragon and took off.” 

“I should have realized,” Erza muttered, visibly deflating at his words before peering at him, her eyes widening slowly as she processed the rest of his words. 

“Gray saw Natsu’s dragon?” Erza covered her mouth with her hand, but Lyon could still see the distress reflected in her eyes. 

“It was a little more than that, I think. By the time Natsu and I got there, the dragon slayers had managed to subdue him but... Yeah, he’s had a rough day,” Lyon sighed, running his fingers through his hair as he tried to think of how to explain. 

“Ever since I’ve known him, Gray has kept people at a distance, it took him years to warm up to me, but with Natsu, it’s always been different. I think having him leave was bad enough, but to have it be on a dragon that was just like the one that destroyed his village...it was too much for Gray to handle.” 

“It was kind of Natsu to leave Gray his scarf, he must have realized how his absence would affect him,” Erza’s voice was full of pride at Natsu’s actions. 

Lyon nodded but remained silent. He hated to lie to Erza about Natsu and Gray, but until he heard from Gray that it was okay to tell people about their relationship, he would honor their request for privacy. 

Erza squeezed Lyon’s shoulder gently even as she avoided his eyes, “You should return to him, at a time like this, it’s important to have family nearby. Don’t worry about work for today, I’ll run some basic drills with the recruits and put a basic schedule together for those that remain. Those five won’t be easy to replace, but I suppose we’ll have to make do with the new recruits.” 

“I’m sorry, I know this must be hard for you as well,” Lyon commented, remembering the dragon slayers were her childhood friends. Erza waved his concern away in a way that was meant to show the matter held no importance to her but instead only managed to scream of her vulnerability. 

“I have to go,” Erza remarked abruptly, appearing uncomfortable with Lyon’s attention. She started to walk away, but after managing only a few steps she stopped, and without turning called out, “I’ll be back to check on the two of you later, I’ll bring some food.” 

Satisfied with her words, she walked off in the direction of their headquarters. 

Watching her retreating figure, Lyon realized that perhaps Gray might not be the only one who was going to need him. Lyon vowed to watch out for Erza as well. 

O-o 

_Three months later_

No matter the weather, Gray never left his house without first wrapping Natsu’s scarf around his neck, even though his scent had faded away after the first few days. The warmth it provided was a constant reminder of Natsu and his promise that he would return. 

In the time since the dragon slayers had left, Gray’s stripping habit had miraculously disappeared. His anxiety became so great he felt nothing but cold all the time. 

The days dragged on, each one seeming longer than the one before it. Gray’s life was an endless blur of getting up, going to work, forcing food into his body, and going to sleep. Wash, rinse, repeat. 

Night times were the worst. For the first few weeks after the dragon slayers left, he’d been plagued with nightmares of Deliora. He’d awaken only to find Lyon standing over his bed staring down at him, his forehead furrowed in concern. 

Eventually, his nightmares gave way to frequent dreams of Natsu as his heart tried to give him what he yearned for, and those were almost more painful because the moment he woke he would experience the despair of finding himself alone once more. 

About the only thing he was thankful for was that Erza had asked Lyon to take over the training of the magical recruits, thus limiting Juvia’s attempts to get Gray’s attention to his off-hours. If she could catch him, that was. 

He’d disappear as soon as his shifts were over, which no one, except maybe Juvia, gave him a hard time about as this had been his usual custom. Gray would trudge over to the field where they used to spend so much of their time. 

At first, it had been hard for him not to associate it with the dragon that had taken his friends away, but he and Natsu had made way too many memories there for him to let go of it without a fight. 

He settled comfortably on the spot where he used to watch Natsu sleep and wondered when if ever he was going to see his mate again. 

_I will always come for you when you need me..._

Gray could still hear those words echoing in his head, except now, instead of bringing him comfort as Natsu had intended, they felt like a slap to the face. The truth was he needed Natsu right now, but the dragon slayer was nowhere to be found. 

He focused on their bond, trying desperately to glean any information he could from it but like every other day, all Gray felt was a distant hum, and it made him wonder, if the worst happened, would he even know? 

He shook his head in an attempt to dispel his gloomy thoughts and tried to remember Natsu the ways he loved him best — with a challenge in his eyes and an annoyingly confident grin at the ready or soft and flustered as they kissed. 

Gray closed his eyes, letting himself pretend he was only waiting for Natsu to wake from one of his naps. He imagined him blinking awake slowly as he used to, his eyes sleepy, but his smile radiant. Gray felt his heart flutter in his chest at the sight, but when he opened his eyes, there was nothing but the empty field. 

_Natsu, when are you coming home?_

“That’s enough of that,” Lyon’s voice brought him back to the present and noticing his brother’s outstretched hand. Gray grabbed it and let himself be pulled up. 

Gray examined Lyon’s face, searching for any hint of disapproval, but Lyon only rolled his eyes at him. 

“Let’s go do something,” Lyon suggested calmly, “How about we go to the lake? We haven’t done that in a while.” 

Gray nodded and followed his brother. They remained quiet for a few minutes, but Gray could feel Lyon struggling with something. He wasn’t surprised when his brother stopped just before the village. 

“Things will get better, Gray, but you have to help them along. You’ve been keeping yourself isolated all this time, Nat-,” Lyon thought better of what he’d been about to say, “well, he wouldn’t like to see you like this. He promised you he will return, and that is exactly what the stubborn bastard will do.” 

Gray managed a chuckle, even as his brain screamed _But when?_ But the small sound seemed to reassure Lyon that Gray was at least considering his words. 

“I know you’re right. Natsu would absolutely kick my ass if he saw me pining over him, but I can’t help it,” Gray was surprised to hear himself confiding in Lyon, “I miss him, Lyon. My whole body misses him, it’s this ache inside me that nothing can quiet.” 

“Uhm, that’s a little too much information,” Lyon replied, looking uncomfortable. 

“No! That hasn’t happened yet!” Gray was quick to assure him, his cheeks burning as he realized what Lyon thought he’d said and he tried to explain his feelings better, “Natsu and I have this sort of spiritual connection, uhm, it’s like with him gone half of me is missing.” 

“Then you have to keep this half strong for when it reunites with…,” to his credit Lyon was trying to be comforting, but he was utterly at a loss, and it showed. He stopped himself before he made a fool of himself, “I have no fucking clue what I’m saying, but just try to snap out of it a little? Cause I miss you too.” 

“I —,” Gray had never stopped to consider how his actions might affect anyone else. Once again, he felt a bit childish, and he promised himself he would try to do better, “I’ll try.” 

Lyon beamed at his reply, and they headed home to change into swim trunks and grab some supplies. They were discussing some of the newer guard members on their way to the lake when they happened upon Erza sitting by the shore, her expression unguarded for the first time they could remember. 

They glanced at each other briefly and with a shrug approached her, sitting on either side of her. Erza snapped out of her reverie, looking surprised to see them but giving no indication that she was bothered by their presence. 

“Come to swim?” she asked them, wiping away at her face although they hadn’t noticed any tears. 

“Are you okay?” Lyon asked, and the care Gray heard in his voice made him wish he hadn’t just agreed to be more social. He was well aware of how Lyon felt about Erza, and he was beginning to worry that Lyon was using him as an excuse to not make a move on the girl he loved. 

“Yes, of course,” Erza waved his concern away, looking off into the distance at the rippling waters of the lake, “I’ve always loved it here, it’s so peaceful.” 

She turned to look at Gray, her eyes lingering on the scarf that was never absent from his neck. She rewarded him with a sympathetic smile, “It also brings back memories of when we all used to come here to play. Sting and Natsu would always start these ridiculous splash wars until they managed to get everyone drenched and then it was a free for all,” Erza wiped at her eyes again, “My mother would be so upset when I got home.” 

Gray tensed up at the mention of Natsu’s name, but he managed to calm himself down by remembering when he and Natsu had played much the same way. It still hurt, but at least it was a memory he held dear. 

“How come you lived at the orphanage with the others if your mom was around?” Gray asked curiously, having always been puzzled by that fact. 

“I didn’t live in the orphanage. My mother and I lived with Anna,” Erza explained, her cheeks blazing for a reason Gray didn’t understand, “When my mom left I stayed with Anna until I got my own place.” 

“Sometimes it feels like everyone I care about leaves me behind,” Erza sighed once again causing Gray to stare at Lyon pointedly, but to his frustration, his brother seemed determined not to make a move. 

“Would it be alright if Juvia joined you?” 

The three friends looked up to find Juvia standing behind them looking uncertain, an umbrella clutched in her arms as always, and before Gray or Lyon could say anything, Erza answered for them, gesturing for Juvia to join them. “Of course, we were just talking about old friends.” 

Juvia immediately took a seat next to Gray, who tried his best to be polite even though he felt uncomfortable in her presence, “You must enjoy coming here.” 

“Yes, Juvia always feels untroubled around her element,” she peeked at Gray shyly, “Juvia wonders why Gray-sama always wears a scarf, even when it’s hot out?” 

“It belongs to a friend, one I would like to see return soon,” Gray responded, deciding not to bother correcting her on the way she referred to him, knowing from experience it was pointless. Erza grabbed his hand and squeezed it. 

“We all would. They may be reckless fools, but we have to trust they’ll be okay, it’s all we can do. Besides, my mother is with them,” Erza reminded him. 

Erza went on to tell them stories about growing up with Sting, Rogue, Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy and Gray found it reassuring to know he wasn’t alone in his vigil, that Erza was waiting just as he was. Lyon finally made his move, slowly placing his arm around Erza’s shoulders, somehow managing not to freak out when she rested her head on his shoulder. 

O-o 

_Six months since Natsu left..._

Deliora had not been sighted for some time, and this made everyone uneasy. Atlas was sure the hellfire dragon was up to something, but Igneel didn’t seem to care, more concerned with trying to find an end to the war to worry about anything else. 

Acnologia and the other renegades, on the other hand, had been even more active than usual and although most of their kills had belonged to the opposition, no one rejoiced at their deaths. 

It hadn’t been that long ago that dragons had numbered in the tens of thousands, but in the course of the long drawn out war, their numbers had dwindled drastically until it was now believed there were not more than a thousand left and more than half of those resided in the cave hidden inside the mountain. 

Since it was common knowledge that Igneel was one of Acnologia’s targets, it had been decided that he should remain at headquarters for his own safety. With Igneel protected by so many dragons, it made Natsu wonder why he was even there in the first place, but seeing how stressed Atlas was all the time it made him glad to at least be able to help him out somewhat. 

This relative freedom was both a blessing and a curse. It did allow Natsu to keep track of his friends and when possible, spend more time with them, but it also put him in Belserion’s sights, and his father’s advisor had no trouble finding things to keep Natsu occupied. Some were extremely dangerous, and Natsu could only assume Igneel was blissfully ignorant of those missions. Others, however, were mind-numbingly boring. 

The worst of these was when Belserion would parade him around the cave, showing him the areas where all the different dragon races lived, making a point of introducing him to every dragon they came across as Igneel’s son. 

About the only good thing Natsu could say about these excursions was that it was amazing to see so many different types of dragons living together in one lair, but it was also mildly irritating to have every dragon immediately treating him with deference. 

The dragon slayers, however, were still not permitted in the dragons living areas. Wendy was the only exception due to her young age and her importance as a healer. She was allowed to stay with Grandine in her quarters, and Natsu saw her regularly as they were both training to improve their healing magic with Grandine and Atlas. 

He had decided to try to boost his healing magic in the hopes it might let him revert any of the physical changes that Atlas had hinted at. It was an ability he’d always had, but it had never been anywhere near as powerful as his dragon magic, and it usually took a lot of out him when he used it on others. He’d begun working on mastering more complex spells and increasing his endurance. Figuring even if it didn’t help him with his problem it could at the very least take some of the pressure off the other healers. 

Metalicana, who was about as old as Igneel, had not suffered as much injury at Acnologia’s hands as Weisslogia and Skiadrum who were significantly younger. He was often out leading attacks with Gajeel riding on his back belting out orders, and Natsu was often called upon to be a part of these missions. 

Rogue and Skiadrum were part of the Shadow Dragon unit. They acted as escorts and intelligence gatherers, their shadow magic allowing them to often hide in plain sight. They were currently tasked with finding out Deliora’s location so that Igneel might attempt to propose a temporary truce once again. 

Weisslogia had been injured the worst out of all their dragons, having sacrificed himself to protect his mate Skiadrum from Acnologia’s attack. He could no longer fly for long distances, so he spent most of the time roaming around the headquarters, trying to find ways he could be of use. 

Natsu had been paired with Sting, Gajeel, and Rogue at one time or another, but it was usually Sting who was assigned to him. They had managed to recover some of their closeness, especially considering he was the only one of Natsu’s friends that had any idea of what was happening to him. 

Out of all the duties he was given, Natsu enjoyed acting as a lookout the best. It was peaceful for the most part. He could sit alone with his thoughts, away from the din of the massive cave. 

Natsu flew to the top of their mountain hideout and looked around, extending all his senses to try to detect any oncoming threat. Not finding any he gazed up at the night sky and the stars that twinkled down at him. 

As always, the color reminded him of Gray’s eyes, and it made him feel closer to his mate than anything else in this new environment. Somewhere in Talos, Gray might be looking at the same sky and thinking of him. He smiled at the thought, and even though it caused him some pain, it was a pain he welcomed. 

Atlas was convinced the best way to keep his dragon instincts from taking over his mind was to strengthen it, so while Natsu sat and patiently continued to watch for any signs of enemy dragons he worked on his meditation exercises. 

If he couldn’t change into a human while he was here the next best thing he could do was to become more aware of his mind. Recognize his thoughts and feelings so that he could continue to remain as much Natsu as possible. In this way, he hoped to be able to recognize the onset of his dragon instincts and isolate them. It was the best defense he had at the moment, and he hoped it would allow him to stop himself from losing control again. 

Natsu had been involved in more fights than he could count by this point, his kill count had quickly risen, causing him to be in a constant battle against his instincts. About the only good thing to be said was that he had not enjoyed any of them like he had the wood dragon, which gave him hope that his attempts over the last three months were having some effect. 

Before he could get started, he needed to relax his mind and body, so he spent about thirty minutes each evening breathing profoundly and reminding himself of all the things that made him want to remain human. 

His first thoughts were always of Gray, for most of all he wanted to stay human for him, but he also thought of Anna and Erza and even the other dragon slayers. Once he had achieved a sort of calm state, he would begin to meditate, a process that made him hyper-aware of his mind and body. 

Sometimes Sting would sneak out and join him for a while, eager to get away from the hostility he experienced daily. This allowed Natsu to focus better as Sting would keep an eye out for him. They rarely saw other dragons at night, with talks of a potential truce in the works no one wanted to be the one to destroy an opportunity at peace. 

That night proved different, to his surprise Sting, Atlas, Belserion, and Weisslogia all came up to see him. 

Natsu immediately came out of his meditative state to look at them worriedly, “Everything okay?” 

“Yeah, _we’re_ going for a ride,” Sting said emphasizing we and grinning in a way that Natsu hadn’t seen in a few months. 

“What are you up to?” Natsu asked not knowing how to respond to Sting’s obvious glee. 

Instead of answering Atlas growled, “We need to do some scouting and Sting volunteered to be your rider, Weisslogia will act as a lookout tonight.” 

“Okay, but where are we going?” 

“Don’t worry about it, let’s go,” Atlas and Belserion took off, and Natsu let Sting get atop him before following his uncle. 

Natsu didn’t understand what was going on, but it was obvious that both Sting and Atlas were excited about it, although Belserion maintained his usual impassive stare. Natsu tried to be patient, fighting off the agitation he felt, knowing the others would tell him soon enough. 

“I think we’re far enough,” Atlas announced before landing atop a sizeable snow-covered mountain many miles away from their headquarters. 

Sting got off Natsu and was positively brimming with excitement as he asked Natsu to change back into his human form. Natsu peered at Atlas who only nodded. He gawked at the two of them nervously until Atlas nudged him with his head. 

“We don’t have all night,” Belserion reminded him, and Natsu nodded, closing his eyes slowly and calling to his magic. When nothing happened, his heart began to race in panic. Was it already too late? 

“Calm down, I can hear your heart beating from over here,” Atlas snapped, looking bored, “you’re just scared because it’s the first time you’ve done it since we left and now you’re worried you might not be able to. Do the centering thing you’ve been practicing and try again.” 

Natsu did as he was told, breathing deeply and focusing on his sense of self before once again calling to his magic. This time he could feel some resistance, but he was able to overpower it, and he soon found himself back in his human form. 

Sting immediately hug tackled him to the ground, “I’m so happy to see you!” 

Natsu could only grin in response, laying still and looking at the sky in relief. 

_He’d done it!_

Natsu did a quick examination of the parts of his body he could observe but couldn’t detect any visible changes. He peered at the others, but none of them were looking at him strangely, and he was filled with a profound sense of relief. He was still okay! 

“First things first, Deliora has finally shown himself, he has requested a meeting. It is to take place in exactly one week,” Atlas informed Natsu, barely giving his transformation any importance as he launched into what he wanted to discuss with his nephew. 

“He wants both Igneel and I there, claims I’m the only one he trusts. He didn’t ask for you, which makes me think he hasn’t heard about your presence yet. I would like to use that to our advantage.” 

“What are you talking about?” Natsu wasn’t sure what was going on, but his dragon instincts were going into overdrive at the mere mention of Deliora, immediately hissing curses at the dragon that had dared hurt his mate. 

With a growing sense of dismay, Natsu realized that even in this form, his instincts were just as loud. That was new. He tried not to worry too much about it as they had always been vocal when it came to the concept of his mate. 

Atlas regarded him with an irritated expression, “Look, I don’t trust Deliora, the only reason to want the two of us there is to try to ambush us and get rid of the last of the royals. He believes if Igneel and I fall, there will be no one left to stop him from trying to take over what’s left of the dragons.” 

Sting and Natsu both studied Atlas with interest. There was something in his words that nagged at Natsu, but he promptly ignored it. He wasn’t interested in any of the politics, he was just there to keep his family safe and get back to his mate as quickly as possible, “So why would Deliora say he trusts you?” 

Belserion interceded, “He doesn’t, this is clearly a trap, but if we can take Deliora out that might go a long way towards reaching our goal of ending the war. Igneel means well, but the time for diplomatic gestures is over. There are too few dragons left for us to be playing these games.” 

Atlas nodded in agreement, “Natsu, Belserion and I have been talking it over, we feel the best course of action is for both of you to follow us to the meeting place. If Deliora’s intentions are treacherous, then the two of you can provide backup and help us take him out. If by some miracle he is sincere you can hold back, and he’ll be none the wiser. But you must remember, once he smells you, he’ll know who you are. Which brings us to something else we wanted to talk to you about.” 

“Me?” Natsu gaped, not really understanding why they needed him to be involved in all of this. 

“Yes, you. You are a royal, Natsu. One of the few left, which means certain responsibilities are expected of you regardless of whether you want them or not,” Belserion replied sternly, peering down at him with a somber expression. 

“Igneel and Atlas have their own tasks they must accomplish so this one must fall to you. It does carry the added benefit that you can do it while in your human form, which Atlas has mentioned would be beneficial to you.” 

Natsu didn’t know how to respond to Belserion’s words. The idea that he would be able to remain in his human form even if only for short periods could only help him retain his humanity! When he realized that Belserion was waiting on him, he nodded at him to continue. 

“Even if we manage to end the animosity between the dragons, we’ll still have the threat of the renegades to contend with. We’ll need to scout for a safe place to relocate the remaining dragons that will be difficult for the renegades to follow. Preferably an unpopulated island of some sort, with some natural barriers to protect it and abundant food sources nearby. This might be the only way we can save the dragons from extinction. When possible, you will come with me while Sting and Weisslogia take over your lookout duties.” 

“Once we’ve found an appropriate location, we will need to start moving dragons there, and then we’ll have to start our own war. The dragons that are capable of performing Atlas’ counterspell will need to stay behind and hunt the remaining renegades down and remove their magic.” 

“Did you finish your spell?” Natsu knew that Atlas had been working day and night on his counterspell, but he hadn’t heard of a significant breakthrough. 

Atlas shook his head, “Not yet, but I think I’m close.” 

“If we think Deliora is truly up to something,” Sting spoke up, “Shouldn’t you get more dragons involved?” 

“Enough creatures have met an untimely death because of Deliora, we’d rather not add any more to that list. He is a problem the red dragons created, it’s up to us to rectify our mistake.” 

“I understand that, but all due respect, the red dragons are some of the strongest dragons we have fighting on our side. If any of you are severely injured, it will be a huge loss to our forces. Shouldn’t you at least have a backup plan that includes the rest of us? If this turns out to be the thing that turns the tide, it might be good for morale to include others in your plan.” 

Belserion closed his eyes and remained quiet for a few minutes, his forehead furrowing as he considered Sting’s words, “I suppose it wouldn’t be a bad idea to protect our territory… I’ll give it some thought.” 

Atlas and Belserion continued to talk amongst themselves and Sting took the opportunity to glance over at Natsu who kept looking at his body in amazement. 

“So, how do you feel?” 

“Relieved, I guess. Part of me had been worried I couldn’t do it any longer.” 

“Not gonna lie, I was worried too,” Sting admitted, and when he noticed Natsu continue to examine his body intently he tried to reassure him, “You don’t look any different, I mean I can’t see any areas Gray might be privy to but —” 

Natsu’s face instantly turned bright red at Sting’s comment, and his friend couldn’t contain himself from dissolving into giggles before turning serious again as he noticed some of the scars that hadn’t been there when they’d arrived all those months earlier. “You have a lot more scars now. Can you heal them with what you’ve learned?” 

Natsu shook his head, “They’re not so bad.” 

“I know, I have some too, I’d just prefer to have no visible reminder of our time here.” 

“Are you sorry you came?’ 

“I don’t know, I’d rather be home, even if Erza is as scary as her mother,” Sting laughed, but it was hollow, and even as Natsu joined in he couldn’t help but worry. 

The first snowball caught Natsu by surprise, but he melted it quickly enough and proceeded to pummel Sting with snowball after snowball, giving him no chance to make new ones. “You forget, I was trained by an ice mage!” 

And for once thinking of Gray didn’t hurt, he smiled, remembering Gray harping on him about how to make a perfect snowball and he used that knowledge to nefarious effect. He chased after Sting who finally sat down in exhaustion and cried uncle. Natsu joined him biting his lip as he debated whether to ask him what he had been weighing on his mind. 

“Hey, Sting?” 

“Hmm?” 

“What’s going on with you and Rogue?” He’d been trying to get the nerve up to ask for a while, for as much as he loved hanging around with Sting, Natsu found it incredibly strange that he seemed to be spending so little time with Rogue. He was counting on Sting feeling more comfortable talking to him in his human guise. 

But no matter how much Natu pushed, Sting refused to answer him. Although the frustrated look on his face was answer enough, and they remained in uncomfortable silence until the red dragons told them it was time to go back. Natsu made a note to try to talk to Rogue when he got the chance. 

O-o 

_A week later..._

Atlas waited for Belserion to give him a confident nod before setting off with Igneel to the agreed meeting spot. 

“So what do you think he’s going to pull, ambush?” Atlas asked curious of Igneel’s thoughts. 

It had been a while since his brother had left their headquarters, and Atlas could tell he was happy to be outside once more. He looked almost too relaxed, considering where they were headed. 

“Must you always be so suspicious?” Igneel complained, “We’re all tired of this, I imagine Deliora is no different, he did call this meeting after all.” 

Atlas snorted but didn’t say anything more, it had been too long since he’d been able to do anything with Igneel and there was no point in worrying about what lay ahead of them. Things had already been set in motion, and all he could do now was to protect Igneel as he’d always done and trust that the contingency plans he and Belserion had put in place would be enough to counteract Deliora’s treachery. 

“What did Natsu say when you told him of the scouting missions?” Igneel asked, that effort needed to remain secret and should not be discussed within the walls of their headquarters. 

“He was pleased, he had some trouble transforming at first, but he was able to do it. He and Belserion have gone out twice now,” Atlas commented, “I’m just glad we were able to come up with a small way to help him.” 

Igneel nodded, looking around at his surroundings as they flew, smelling the edges of the territory they had claimed as theirs. 

“I, for one, will be glad to return home when all this is over. This land is beautiful, but it doesn’t compare to the lake and mountains that surround Talos.” 

Atlas silently agreed, he had become attached to their home, there wasn’t a day that he didn’t miss his room, full of his scrolls, magical items, and ingredients that were hard to come by in this area. He extended his senses as far out as he could manage, searching for Deliora’s familiar scent, knowing he should be able to smell it by now. 

He began to make it out a few miles later, and by the way Igneel stiffened next to him knew his brother had sensed it as well. Atlas continued his search, chuckling to himself when he detected additional smells. So it was an ambush as he’d expected. Deliora was nothing if not predictable. 

O-o 

Natsu waited impatiently for Belserion to finish discussing their plans with Irene. Atlas and Igneel had left for their meeting some five minutes earlier, and Natsu didn’t like them being so far ahead. 

Five minutes was an incredibly long time in a fight, he’d learned that very quickly. Most battles were over much faster than that, even if the aftereffects could last for a lifetime. So far he’d been lucky, he’d bled a lot and had suffered some wounds but none that could be considered life-threatening. 

Sting, Rogue, and Gajeel were standing silently around him, each placing a hand on him as they waited for the operation to begin. 

“It’s gonna be fine guys, Atlas and Igneel are both strong, and with Belserion and I there to back them up we should all be just fine,” Natsu growled softly, not liking the worried expressions on their faces. 

“We know,” Rogue replied, “and we’ll also be there to help if you need it. I guess we’re just all hoping this will be it.” 

Sting and Gajeel grunted their assent. “We’ll be right behind the territory line, Runt, remember that. You don’t have to be a hero on this one.” 

Natsu nodded only half-listening to their words. He was antsy, having had a bad dream the night before and he urged Belserion to hurry up in his mind, knowing better than to utter the words out loud. 

After what felt like an eternity, Belserion finally motioned him to follow. Natsu bolted out of the cave opening without even a word of goodbye to his friends. And just like that, they were off. They remained quiet even as they flew faster than usual, both of them wanting to get close enough to see if they were needed. 

A few minutes after they passed their territory line they smelled it, there were many more scents than the three they had been hoping for, and without even a word between them, both dragons added an extra burst of speed. Their worst fears had come to pass. 

O-o 

The wind shifted and with it came a smell that froze Atlas’ blood, the last time he had been up against this particular foe he’d almost lost his brother. 

Atlas glared at the hellfire dragon he had once considered a friend, “Just when I think you couldn’t be any dumber you go and do something like this…” 

Deliora gave no indication he’d heard Atlas, his gaze falling greedily on Igneel, the dragon who had humiliated him and then banished him from his home. Except that hadn’t really been their home, Desierto had been their home, and Igneel had moved them all away from it to go on some fool’s errand. 

The red dragons were mighty and powerful. They should never have gotten involved in this pointless conflict, and if Deliora had had his way they never would have, but here they were, and he’d be damned if he didn’t come out on top this time. 

He would make Igneel pay for his sins and make Atlas watch as his precious brother was killed in front of him. Not by him, of course, he had worked extra hard and sacrificed countless of his own dragons to make this happen. And as he watched his current ally move away from where he had been hiding and into the open, Deliora couldn’t help but rejoice at the looks of dismay on both Atlas an Igneel’s faces. 

“Well, well, well, I can’t believe you were right, “Acnologia smiled easily, the hunger in his eyes unmistakable, “the last two remaining royals right here for the reaping. I am going to enjoy tearing you apart limb from limb.” 

` 

Acnologia’s wink was sickening, and as he changed into his dragon form, Atlas prepared to fight. He could only thank the stars that they had anticipated something going wrong. 


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18 

Igneel had been prepared for a great many things as he flew toward the meeting. But he’d never once considered Deliora would betray them all just for the sake of revenge. 

What did he possibly think he would gain from this treachery? Any truce he might have negotiated with Acnologia was obviously doomed to fail. The renegade dragon slayer had lost his mind a long time ago, but the one thing he’d always been clear on was his hatred of all dragons. 

Acnologia wouldn’t be satisfied until there were no more dragons left on Earthland, he’d said so on many occasions. If he managed to kill them, Igneel had no doubt Acnologia would turn on Deliora, there was no other possible outcome. 

Then again, Deliora had always been incredibly short-sighted. Like most hellfire dragons, he’d always let his emotions control him. They fed his flames and his magic but kept him from being able to devise elaborate plans. 

Atlas had been the exception. His interest in magic from an early age had forced him to gain control of his emotions, allowing him to cast ever more complicated spells. 

Atlas’ eyes widened in what Igneel easily recognized as horror before propelling himself towards Acnologia with almost deranged determination. And suddenly, it was as if everything were moving in slow motion. 

Atlas’ hellfire blazed with his fury, his snout distorted with a hatred that seemed wholly out of character for him. He roared at the renegade dragon slayer that had been responsible for so many dragon deaths, and for once, those feelings resounded deeply inside of Igneel. 

Ever since Porlyusica had died, Igneel had felt detached from the world. He went through the motions as best he could, trying to fulfill his duties. But outside of the longing for someone that was just outside of his reach, Igneel could only seem to muster feelings for Atlas and Natsu. 

Even though he’d managed to defeat Deliora all those years ago, his efforts had been halfhearted at best. He should have killed Deliora then, as Dragon Law demanded, but he’d decided to be merciful instead, hoping that Deliora would come to see the error of his ways. 

He hadn’t stopped to consider the consequences of that action, and that one choice had led them here. Now, as he watched Deliora let their greatest enemy attack his brother, the dragon he’d once considered his best friend, it was more than Igneel could stand. 

He thought back to the reports they’d received of the large numbers of dragons killed by the renegades of late, and he knew without a doubt that had been Deliora’s doing. He’d willfully sacrificed his own brethren to further his lust for power, and that was something Igneel could never forgive. 

The Fire Dragon King was suddenly filled with an intense rage. It brought him back as nothing else before had managed to do. He hadn’t been exaggerating when he’d told Natsu he’d been a great fighter a few hundred years ago. And now, as he began to feel that familiar battle lust claim him, he could once again see clearly. 

Everything around him seemed sharper, brighter, full of vibrant colors that had been absent for far too long, and he welcomed them. The sights, the smells, the clarity. Igneel knew what he had to do. 

He covered himself in his flames and prepared to join his brother, ignoring Deliora for the moment. It had been a while since he and Atlas had fought together, but the rhythm was not something easily forgotten. One way or another, this would end today. 

Acnologia must be destroyed at all costs. 

Igneel crouched, his wings flaring slightly, his tail whipping in agitation as he watched Atlas leap back and up, out of the reach of Acnologia’s maw. As the slayer rose to his hind legs, unfurling his wings to take to the air after Atlas, Igneel suddenly launched forward. His massive form was a blur as he closed the 100 meters in the blink of an eye. 

He wasted no effort on magic or fire, knowing Acnologia would be unfazed by either. Instead, Igneel rammed his shoulder into Acnologia’s chest, launching the startled beast backward and attempting to snake his head around and bite at one of Acnologia’s wings. 

The two tumbled, gouging furrows in the ground as they snapped and clawed at each other in a frenzy. Igneel ended up on his back, and Acnologia attempted to clamp his jaws on Igneel’s exposed throat while pinning the red dragon’s forelegs to the ground. His eyes gleamed with malevolent glee as he saw the opportunity for a quick end to the battle. 

Unfortunately for Acnologia, in his narrow focus, he forgot to account for the other participant in this brawl. Igneel suddenly thrust his hindlegs upward, momentarily lifting Acnologia’s haunches into the air, well above the black dragon’s head. Acnologia’s tail flailed high in the air to prevent him from tipping over. 

The timing of this maneuver was perfect for Atlas, who leveled out from the steep dive he’d been in, clamping his jaws onto the middle of the black dragon’s tail. He tucked into a roll and, with a twist of his body, hit the ground just past Igneel’s head, facing the opposite direction. 

He took the significant speed and momentum of his dive and transferred it onto Acnologia. Hauling the tail around and flipping the slayer completely about, ripping him off his perch atop Igneel, and sending the black dragon careening wildly into an outcropping of rocks, reducing them to rubble and a cloud of dust. 

Atlas turned to watch his foe right and extricate himself rather gracelessly from the rubble. Igneel rolled to his feet and stood beside his brother. Both of them shared a fierce grin at the thrill of battling together. They launched themselves at the black dragon, this time with Igneel going high, and Atlas charging along the ground. 

Acnologia crouched and tracked Igneel’s path through the air, but as Atlas leaped in what was intended to be an interception of Acnologia’s launch into the air, the black dragon dove to the ground instead. He twisted at the same time and thrust his claws up to rake deeply across the bared underbelly of Atlas as he sailed overhead. 

Atlas roared in anguish as he took his own spill into the pile of rocks Acnologia had just left. Crimson blood splashed across the boulders from the furrows in Atlas’ chest, but he quickly rose and prepared to re-engage. 

0-0 

The smell of blood filled the air pushing Natsu and Belserion to reach the meeting spot at full speed, each desperate to reach Igneel and Atlas. They hadn’t been sure what to expect, but they both stopped, admiring the rare sight of Igneel and Atlas fighting together. Natsu, in particular, was in awe, having never seen his father fight before. 

He was so transfixed that he didn’t notice Acnologia studying him even as he fought. 

“Who’s this?” Acnologia asked, not even sounding winded as he continued to battle against the two fire dragons. 

Natsu remained silent, knowing there was no point in answering. If Acnologia could smell him, he would figure out his identity soon enough. He heard Belserion roar out a warning next to him and noticed Deliora trying to slink away while the attention of the red dragons was on Acnologia. 

As much as Natsu wanted to deal with Acnologia, the second he saw Deliora, his dragon instincts took over. It happened so quickly he almost didn’t notice it. Images of Gray played through his mind as he was consumed by a bloodlust stronger than any he’d ever experienced before. 

_His fault!_

It was Deliora’s fault that Gray had lost his parents at such a young age. That Gray hated dragons, and Natsu couldn’t tell his mate the truth about himself. His fault the war continued long after everyone wanted to go home. 

And now, he had committed the worst sin of all, the one for which Natsu could never forgive him. Deliora had betrayed all dragons by allying himself with Acnologia. 

Deliora had to die, that was all there was to it. 

Natsu tried to fight through the haze. To take control back from the instincts that were screaming at him to kill Deliora. He was terrified of what it could mean if he let them consume him, but they were too strong for him to overpower. Natsu surrendered, reminding himself he’d long ago decided to go after Deliora if he ever got the chance. 

_I will avenge Gray’s family, and I will correct my father’s mistake. Deliora will never hurt anyone ever again._

His body and soul vibrated in anticipation, and Natsu could feel all reluctance fading away until there was nothing but a flicker of apprehension left inside him. Soon, even that was gone. 

“I will destroy you!” Natsu roared, leaving Belserion to waver between aiding his father and uncle in their battle or going after Natsu. 

Natsu coated himself in his hottest flames as he veered towards Deliora, who seemed honestly surprised to see the hatred on his face. 

“Igneel, you’ve been holding out on me,” Acnologia leered at the King of the Fire Dragons as he sniffed the air. His eyes narrowed in interest as he peered at Natsu. 

“There was another one,” Acnologia’s muzzle widened into a sickly grin, “I wonder, will he be a challenge?” 

Those words decided Belserion, and he joined Igneel and Atlas in their fight. 

Natsu chased after Deliora knowing the dragon would be immune to his breath attacks. That didn’t mean his fire was completely useless against him, he could still use it to power up his other attacks. He roared as loudly as he could, giving voice to the rage and loathing he felt. 

Acnologia’s vile laugh rang out as he watched Natsu close in on Deliora while the traitor darted back and forth, looking for a way to evade Natsu’s approach. 

“You shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss us, Acnologia,” Igneel advised, taking advantage of his distraction to slash Acnologia across the chest with his claws, barely earning a grunt from the Black Dragon in response. 

Deliora determined there was no way to evade Natsu, and he braced himself for the young dragon’s attack. However, Natsu hit the ground just in front of Deliora and dug his front claws into the ground, wheeling about. 

His hindquarters and tail lashed out, the narrower end of his tail moving faster than could be seen. It struck Deliora across the jaw, and the force of the blow spun the overbalanced dragon around, sending him reeling and seeing stars. 

Natsu immediately leaped into the air again, looping and diving down from directly above Deliora, who had just started to clear his head and was looking from side to side to try to spot his foe. A moment later, Natsu crashed into the huge dragon’s back with enough force to make the ground shudder as Deliora’s legs gave out and he collapsed to the ground, frantically squirming to try to shake Natsu off as the young dragon raked his claws at Deliora’s wings and bit at his neck. 

Acnologia laughed once again, this time with a mirth that sickened everyone present, “That’s a fine son you have there, Igneel. Deliora is clearly outmatched,” he paused for a moment, thinking as he continued to fight with the three dragons. 

“While I wouldn’t mind seeing him kill Deliora, I think I’d rather challenge him at full strength.” 

Acnologia made a disconcerting noise, and three additional renegade dragon slayers exited a nearby cave, instantly transforming into their dragon forms and taking to the air. The Black Dragon laughed at the dismay on the faces of the red dragons. 

“Come now, you didn’t actually think you were the only ones clever enough to think of bringing backup, did you?” 

As soon as his dragons were close enough, he disengaged, leaving them to fight in his stead as he took off in the direction of Deliora and Natsu. All three dragons converged on Igneel, attacking him from all sides as Atlas and Belserion tried to figure out the best way to help him. 

Igneel whirled and leaped frantically, avoiding leaving his back turned to any of the three enemies for more than the briefest of moments. The slayers darted in and out constantly, trying to bite or claw exposed flesh as it was presented to them and keeping a healthy distance from Igneel’s deadly teeth and flames. Even with his considerable skill and ferocity, Igneel was quickly accumulating more and more small wounds, slowly soaking the ground below him with blood. 

The maneuvering dance broke up as Atlas and Belserion entered the fray. Dragons and slayers took to the sky as they squared off in pairs. The dragons seemed to have a slight advantage in flight, but the slayers were still formidable, and it took several minutes before there was any noticeable shift in the battle. 

Atlas peeled away from the slayer he’d been engaged with and suddenly dropped just above one that had been trying to bite Igneel’s wing. Atlas exploded in a nova of hellfire, scorching and stunning his target who fell limply out of the sky, trailing smoke from all over his body. Atlas wheeled and re-engaged with his previous foe, who looked much warier at getting as close to the fire dragon. 

In unspoken accord, Atlas and Belserion took advantage of the momentary reprieve as a chance to get Igneel away to safety. 

The King of the Fire Dragons was leaking blood from several wounds, but Atlas knew there was no time to cast any healing spells. They had to get back to the cave so Grandine and Wendy could work on him. 

Atlas heard the uncertainty in Natsu’s battle roar as he was suddenly faced with Acnologia. He forced himself to drown him out, even as he felt terrible about it. He had faith in Natsu’s abilities as a fighter and his determination to protect his father at all costs. He had no doubt Natsu would be able to hold his own long enough for them to get Igneel out. 

Any other course of action at this point would only lead to their destruction, and that would be disastrous to all the dragons who were counting on them to restore the peace. 

He could see Igneel begin to respond to it as well, instinctively trying to move towards his son. 

“Not this time,” Atlas murmured sadly, casting a spell on his brother that made him nearly weightless. 

He grabbed on to him, using his magic again to speed himself up. Atlas needed to get Igneel to safety no matter what. He couldn’t let him die, not before that blasted abomination. 

“Belserion,” Atlas yelled, but the dragon was already trying to keep the renegades from following them. Two of them managed to get away from him, promptly giving chase. 

Their dragon forms were smaller than both Atlas and Igneel, but they moved swiftly in the air. Both dragon slayers kept up a constant barrage of attacks that Atlas needed to evade as he dragged Igneel along with him. 

_Just a little longer..._

Atlas knew there were other dragons ready for just this eventuality, he just had to get to them, and everything would be fine. He looked down at Igneel worriedly, focusing more magic into his speed spell even as he pushed his wings as hard as he could. 

He tried not to think about how he had left Natsu behind, knowing his nephew would have wanted him to save Igneel. He couldn’t help but worry, even though Belserion, who was a considerable fighter, had stayed behind to help. Part of him couldn’t help but hope that the two of them could take out Acnologia once and for all. 

Atlas winced as he was pelted with yet another energy blast. His grip on Igneel loosened in response, but he was able to grab him quickly and keep going. 

He didn’t have to look back to know the third renegade had joined his pursuers. The additional set of attacks alerting him to their presence. He fretted about what that could mean to the other fight that he hoped was still ongoing, but there was nothing he could do to help. Not until he got Igneel to safety. 

_Natsu, don’t give him any openings..._

He caught a whiff of blood in the air and wailed upon recognizing it, his instincts screaming at him to turn back and join the fight. But he couldn’t, no matter how much he wanted to. If Igneel died as he was now… no, he couldn’t think about the consequences. He just had to hurry. 

“Leave me,” Igneel struggled against him, pleading in a broken voice, “You have to go help him.” 

“Stop it,” Atlas snapped, even as he fought every instinct he possessed not to do precisely what Igneel was demanding, “Natsu will be fine.” 

_He has to be._

0-0 

“What the hell is going on?” Gajeel muttered, although everyone around him could hear him, “Someone should have returned by now.” 

Metalicana grunted his agreement, extending his senses as far as he could. “Something’s wrong.” 

“Skiadrum?” Metalicana glanced over at the dragon that was standing next to him, his dragon slayer on his back. 

Without a word, the dragon took off and instantly disappeared from their view as Weisslogia and Sting gazed worriedly at the spot where they had been. 

A large group of dragons and dragon slayers were converged at the edge of their territory, waiting for the red dragons to return. There was hope that a truce had been accomplished, but they were ready for a fight nonetheless. Most of them had been fighting for years now. 

They were a ragtag collection of all different races of dragons. The only real gain they had managed during this war was that the previously solitary dragons had learned to coexist somewhat peacefully. They had come to rely on each other in combat and had even managed to forge friendships. There were some exceptions, of course, but for the moment, they were all willing to stand together. They had seen enough death. 

The minutes dragged on in tense silence as they waited for Skiadrum to return with a report. 

“Atlas is coming in fast with Igneel, but they’re being pursued by three renegades. There’s no sign of Natsu or Belserion. We must hurry, they need our help!” Skiadrum suddenly reappeared, shouting urgently even as Rogue somehow managed to remain impassive, his expression giving nothing away as to what he had seen. 

Metalicana and Weisslogia had already taken off before Skiadrum had finished speaking, and Irene began belting out orders to the dragon slayers who climbed on their assigned dragons and took off. 

“Stay back!” Skiadrum yelled at Weisslogia, “This is no place for you, I told you before.” 

“And I told _you_ , these are my friends. I will not sit back and do nothing,” Weisslogia glared at his mate before flying past him. 

He could feel Skiadrum’s anger at his defiance flooding him through their bond. It mixed in with the worry and ever-present guilt that were such a large part of their relationship now. He ignored it. He was tired of feeling helpless, and he was tired of being needlessly treated as an invalid by his mate. 

_Ssstubborn fool_

Weisslogia shook his head at the intrusion and flew on, refusing to answer even as he extended his senses to try to locate his friends. Soon he could make out a red blur in the distance, and he readied a spell. 

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Sting asked, keeping his voice steady as he petted his father, knowing how hard it was for him to go against Skiadrum’s wishes. 

Weisslogia snorted, “You’re one to talk.” 

When he felt his son tense, he relented, “We must do what we feel is right, they will understand eventually.” 

“Are you up to a fight?” 

“We’ll find out, won’t we?” 

With that, there was no more talk as they both readied their magic and focused on finding a way to help Atlas and Igneel. 

Irene had deployed an assortment of dragons and dragon slayers. They would charge the renegade dragon slayers, freeing the Talos dragons to go after Belserion and Natsu once Igneel was safe. 

“That bastard!” Metalicana roared in unbridled anger. 

“Listen up!” Metalicana broadcast in his loudest roar, “Igneel says Deliora made some sort of deal with Acnologia. They tried to kill off Atlas and Igneel. Natsu and Belserion are fighting them now. Igneel wants us to take him, so Atlas can lead us back to help them.” 

“Atlas isn’t going to like that,” Skiadrum muttered, knowing how protective Atlas was about his brother. 

Several dragons cursed in disbelief, but Weisslogia wasn’t really surprised at Deliora’s treachery, it was what they had anticipated after all. Although to ally himself with Acnologia against his own kind was certainly unexpected and unforgivable. 

Deliora had just signed his own death sentence. No matter what their particular stance on humans might be, no dragon would ever join him again. 

“We can discuss this later. For now, we must focus on the fight that’s ahead of us,” Irene’s yell interrupted Weisslogia’s thoughts, and he silently agreed with the dragon slayer. 

Weisslogia could hear grunts of agreement and battle cries rise behind him at her words, and he turned his attention back to his mate. 

“It’s Natsu we’re talking about, he’s probably torn up as it is. He won’t put up a fight. I’ll take Igneel and get him back to Grandine, the rest of you follow Atlas back to Natsu and Belserion.” 

“Weiss, you know—” Skiadrum began, but Weisslogia cut him off immediately. 

“I can do this, Skia.” 

_Please believe in me..._

Weisslogia could feel the battle raging in Skiadrum’s mind, but he could also feel the pride his mate felt, and he vowed not to let him down. 

“Be careful.” 

Weisslogia nodded and waited for Metalicana to use his telepathy to tell Igneel of their plan. A group of dragons zoomed past him, launching an attack on the renegades, and Weisslogia didn’t hesitate to head over to Atlas. 

As he’d predicted, Atlas didn’t look happy, but he also didn’t put up a fight, handing Igneel over before whispering in a pleading tone. 

“Weiss —.” 

Weisslogia was already flying back when he shouted, “I will protect him with my life, go bring Natsu home.” 

He tried to ignore the deep gashes he’d seen on his friend, or the tiredness in his eyes, knowing Atlas would do everything in his power to protect the nephew he loved as a son. 

Weisslogia flew back to the cave as fast as he could, knowing every second could mean the difference between life and death. He held on to the bigger dragon tightly, grumbling whenever he heard Igneel grunt in discomfort. 

“Is he going to be alright?” Sting asked quietly, his voice sounding tremulous, and Weisslogia could hear his own doubts reflected. He knew his son’s question was not limited to the dragon they were carrying. 

Sting was worried about a great many things at the moment. Weisslogia wished he could give him some comfort, but he’d never been one for empty words. The fact was, they had no idea what their loved ones would be up against. 

“They are all very strong. They will do their best, just as we are doing now,” Weisslogia looked down at Igneel, wanting to reassure himself that the red dragon was still with them. He wished he hadn’t, he’d never seen Igneel look so despondent before. 

“We’re almost there, I can smell Grandine,” Weisslogia announced, pushing himself as much as he dared. The strain on his body was tremendous, but he knew he couldn’t rest until he got Igneel to the healer. As the cave entrance loomed tantalizingly closer, he called upon the last of his energy to bring Igneel home. 

0-0 

“Natsu, watch out!” 

Natsu stopped mid-attack, heeding the tone of Belserion’s shout more than the words themselves. He forced himself to study what was happening around him. His eyes narrowed when he saw Atlas rushing away with Igneel, noticing straight away that Igneel was not flying on his own power. 

His dismay intensified when he saw two renegade dragon slayers chase after them, barraging them with attacks. Belserion had his hands full with a third while Acnologia was flying straight towards him. 

Natsu made a split-second decision. He let go of Deliora, determined to help protect his father as he had come here to do. Deliora immediately took off away from Natsu, not even bothering to look back. 

“You were lucky today,” Natsu fumed as he called out to the fleeing dragon, “But I promise you this, I will be the last thing you ever see.” 

Natsu steeled himself to face off against Acnologia, hoping in doing so, Belserion would have a chance to defeat the remaining renegade and follow after Atlas and Igneel. 

Natsu’s initial reaction to being one on one with the dragon from his nightmare was terror. The malice Acnologia had exuded in his dream was nothing compared to what it felt like to be in his presence. The fear tried to inject doubts and insecurities into Natsu, urging him to flee, but he fought it off. He couldn’t afford to have Acnologia go after his father as well. 

He had to fight, even though he knew this renegade dragon slayer was not only incredibly powerful but also completely insane. The madness reflected in his cold blue eyes brought this point home as nothing else could. Acnologia was lethal, and Natsu could not afford to underestimate him, not when he had managed to best all the dragons that had taught Natsu how to fight. 

Natsu’s terror was soon replaced by rage as he thought of all the dragons that had fallen to Acnologia. Some of which Natsu was sure had not only trusted him but might have even considered him a friend. His rage boiled through him, heating his blood and bonding with his magic, magnifying it until Natsu felt drunk with it. 

He was well aware that dying by this creature’s hand was a possibility, one he must avoid at all costs. It would destroy Gray to learn he’d been killed by a dragon, and he would do anything to keep that from happening. 

Acnologia, however, wasn’t interested in fighting him yet, seeming content to size Natsu up as the sounds of Belserion and the renegade’s fighting continued behind them. 

“There is something different about you,” Acnologia finally spoke, “You smell of Igneel but…also something else,” He shook his head in confusion, seemingly trying to figure out the puzzle. 

For a brief moment, there was a lucidity to his eyes that hadn’t been there before. It disconcerted Natsu, who didn’t know what to make of the creature in front of him. 

He stared at Acnologia open-mouthed, his breath catching at the Black Dragon’s words. How had he been able to tell when no dragon had yet been able to? 

The moment was short-lived. Acnologia’s eyes quickly lost their lucidity as his maw stretched into a sickening grin. “Kind of small, aren’t you?” Acnologia taunted, and the similarity to Gajeel’s words snapped Natsu out of his temporary daze. 

“I don’t need size to kick your ass,” Natsu replied with feigned bravado. 

Thanks to Atlas’ constant experimentation, Natsu had been surrounded by magic his entire life. It didn’t take him long to recognize that Acnologia possessed many different kinds of magic, including his beloved fire. 

Natsu banished all extraneous thoughts and feelings from his mind, he couldn’t afford any distractions. His survival would depend on being able to stay a step ahead of Acnologia. 

Natsu feinted, but Acnologia didn’t flinch in the slightest. He charged, stopping a short distance in front of the slayer, digging his foreclaws into the earth and spinning his hindquarters around as he whipped his tail out at the slayer’s head. 

Natsu’s tail moved faster than the eye could follow, but it was as if Acnologia knew precisely what to expect with the move. His jaws lunged forward, biting down right where he predicted the tail would be. 

Natsu heard the familiar whip-crack of the tail attack, but instead of a strike against the slayer’s head, he felt a jolt like a shock of lightning as half a meter of his tail was bitten off by the black dragon. 

He stifled a short howl of pain as he completed his spin, facing the slayer again. The young dragon struggled to control the pain and keep his composure. He watched Acnologia tilt his head upward and gulp down the piece of tail in his mouth with exaggerated delight and smacking. 

Natsu channeled the shock and pain into fury and charged again. He veered to the right, tucking his left wing tight against his side to make it less of a target as he leaped and attempted to rake both of his foreclaws down Acnologia’s side and back, aiming for the root of his right wing. 

The slayer crouched low, dodging the claws, and his jaws snapped at Natsu’s hindleg. Natsu sensed the attack, however, and used his tail to smack the top of Acnologia’s head, knocking it off target and temporarily blinding the slayer with the blood that continued to well out of the ruined tip of his tail. 

Natsu spread his wings and took to the air. He wheeled about and immediately dove, trying to take advantage of the superior position before Acnologia could also get airborne. 

He breathed a tremendous gout of billowing flames. He knew they couldn’t harm the slayer directly, but they did momentarily obscure his sight. Using this to his advantage, Natsu tucked his head, barreling through the flames and straight into his foe. 

He pushed the slayer back, immediately slashing out with tooth and claw, trying to draw blood from the less armored underbelly. One claw struck home, but Natsu stayed in motion, attempting to get behind the slayer, biting at his tail and slashing at his wings with claws. 

Acnologia leaped away from Natsu, spreading his own wings and gaining altitude. He turned and launched a series of breath attacks at the young dragon, but Natsu evaded them with dexterity, trying to close the distance to the slayer. 

As Natsu neared his foe, he suddenly spiraled above the black dragon. Planting all four feet on the slayer’s back, he flexed his talons to dig in momentarily, then shoved down hard, launching himself higher and forcing Acnologia to pump his wings to regain control of his flight. 

The two dragons flew away from each other for a moment, then wheeled and began speeding toward one another for another clash. This time, the slayer simply overpowered the smaller fire dragon. He pushed Natsu past vertical until he was upside down, slashing Natsu’s neck with a claw. The young dragon cried out in pain and fury, losing considerable altitude while he struggled to regain control of his flight. 

0-0 

Belserion did his best to keep the renegade pinned down, but after hearing yet another howl of pain from Natsu, he knew he had to do something. He had no doubt Atlas would be returning soon, and for this, he was glad. Natsu would need healing, but right now, more than anything, he needed help. 

Even though the young dragon was holding his own, Belserion knew that Acnologia was still only feeling him out. Acnologia enjoyed a challenge, and Natsu was a dragon he hadn’t come across before, and that was becoming increasingly rare for the renegade. 

When Belserion heard Acnologia begin to cast the spell he’d used against all his friends, the one that had the power to reap souls, he panicked. 

_Oh, no, you don’t!_

Belserion flew as fast as he could towards Acnologia and Natsu, lunging to place himself in the way of the spell. 

Acnologia’s frustration resounded around them as Belserion thwarted his attack. Belserion felt pride surge in his chest at the thought that he’d managed to protect the dragon he’d come to think of as their future. He was hundreds of years old, strong enough to survive the spell, but he wasn’t sure Natsu would have. 

There was no denying Natsu’s strength or determination, but he was still young and a hybrid. Taking a direct hit from that spell had almost killed Weisslogia, who was much older. Probably _would_ have killed him if he hadn’t been mated to Skiadrum. 

Belserion was mildly amused at the shock registered on Natsu’s face as the hit he’d expected never came. Although it was quickly marred by the sorrow he recognized in Natsu’s eyes. Belserion tried to smile for him, even as the pain ripped through his body. 

“You need to go, Natsu, this isn’t a fight you can win at the moment,” Belserion advised, keeping his voice even so as not to cause him any further worry, “I will buy you some time.” 

“I won’t leave you,” Natsu protested, “How can you ask that of me?” 

“You must.” 

Belserion had hoped Natsu would have grasped the logic in his plan, but he hadn’t really expected him to agree to a retreat. Not when there was so much at stake. 

He took stock of his condition as the air around him heated up to increasingly uncomfortable temperatures until it was almost like having Atlas nearby. For a brief moment, Belserion hoped the heat signaled the arrival of the other dragons, but it was only Natsu, looking angrier than Belserion had ever seen him before. 

Belserion struggled to get up quickly, deciding that if today were his last battle, he would go down, giving it his all. He had sworn his allegiance to the Dragneels a long time ago, and he had never regretted it once. He would use whatever power he had left to fight alongside Natsu. He spared a thought to his dragon slayer, a woman both brave and wise, and he was filled with sadness. 

_Goodbye, Irene, please forgive me…_

0-0 

Watching Belserion stand beside him, even though it was obvious how much it pained him fueled Natsu’s determination even further. He wasn’t sure what that spell had been, but he had the nagging suspicion it was the one that had reaped the souls of his family to varying degrees. 

That thought angered him beyond anything he’d ever felt before. Belserion had likely given up his soul to protect him, and Natsu would do his best to see that sacrifice not be wasted. 

Acnologia roared in fury at being deprived of his magic’s intended target. He raced forward, aiming at Belserion, but was forced to dodge as Natsu closed on his flank, and the young dragon attempted to bite the slayer’s tail. 

Natsu struggled to keep Acnologia’s full attention. It was evident that Belserion was significantly weakened by the reaping. Despite this, he fought on, looking for any opportunity to lunge in and attack while Acnologia was distracted. Unfortunately, it was only a matter of time before the weakness and exhaustion slowed Belserion enough for Acnologia to take advantage of it. 

Belserion lunged to attack the slayer’s flank as Acnologia wheeled to chase Natsu after their latest clash. The fire dragon failed to notice that Acnologia’s head was curled back, carefully watching Belserion’s charge. When he was close enough, Acnologia raised his tail and smashed it down on Belserion’s head, stunning the dragon who went limp and plummeted to the ground with a crash. 

Natsu wheeled and roared in anguish as he saw Belserion’s form crumpled on the ground below. The young dragon channeled his magic into his four legs, each blazing like a comet as the fire pushed him to an incredible speed. 

The gap between Natsu and Acnologia closed in moments, and Natsu spiraled, briefly rising above the black dragon as if going for his back again. At the last moment, while Natsu’s legs were above him, he fed another pulse of fire magic through them. He pushed himself suddenly lower to pass below the slayer, where he had an open shot at his vulnerable chest. 

Natsu stretched his jaws and clamped firmly onto Acnologia’s left arm. He used all his momentum and magical thrust to wrench violently at the arm. Natsu felt a jarring shift in their struggle, and he righted himself moments before hitting the ground, flaring his wings to manage a landing instead of a crash. 

Natsu’s teeth were still clamped onto the arm he’d managed to rip from Acnologia. Euphoria coursed through him at Acnologia’s muffled roar of pain, but it was replaced by curiosity as he felt a surge of weakness. 

Natsu looked down to see a gaping hole in his side, leaking what seemed to be a river of blood. He looked up with confusion, and his vision wavered, his focus stretching out as if he were looking down a tunnel that was rapidly growing longer and darker. 

At the far end of the tunnel, he saw Acnologia, definitely missing an arm, but with a huge mouthful of flesh in his jaws, dripping hot blood that steamed in the cooling air. Natsu’s legs lost their strength, and he stumbled but managed to keep his front legs locked upright, sinking into a sitting crouch. 

Still, there was fear in Acnologia’s eyes, and Natsu reveled in it even as the Black Dragon spit out the chunk of his flesh before glaring down at him. Natsu could hear Belserion yell out his name urgently, but he couldn’t seem to focus on anything but how cold he felt. 

Natsu laughed. The idea of a fire dragon feeling cold amused him. He called on his magic to warm himself up, and though he still felt plenty of it, it refused to respond to his beckon. 

Belserion continued to call out to him, and Natsu closed his eyes for just a moment, trying to think of what to do. He felt himself begin to drift away, but an image of Gray assaulted him almost immediately, refusing to let him give up, his voice pleading with him. 

_I need you_

Natsu’s heart ached, and he reached out with his arm trying to touch the vision of Gray that had appeared before him. Gray looked sad as he begged him…. 

_I can’t lose you to them too!_

And Natsu found himself repeating the words he’d said before leaving Gray in their field. 

_You’ll never lose me... I’ll see you soon, Princess._

_Come back to me, Natsu..._

Natsu opened his eyes once again. Even as everything continued to fade to utter darkness, he stubbornly called out again, not sure if the call was to his mate or his magic. And as his awareness dimmed, he felt that warm spot he was calling to turn its attention toward him, responding to his call. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I am terrible at writing fight scenes so I enlisted the help of my husband once again, since he actually enjoys writing them. He was given the skeleton of the chapter along with “stage directions” of what I wanted to overall have happen. I think he did a great job, even if he surprised even me with how far he was willing to go! Thank you very much, love. :)
> 
> I have enjoyed fleshing out the dragons more than I thought I would (I really liked Belserion in this chapter) and while I would love to go more into some of the things that will happen, I know it’s getting to be time to move on. The next chapter should wrap up the war portion (and setup other things) and move us back to Talos. 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked this first chapter and decide to keep reading the rest of the story. If you did please let me know somehow. I enjoy hearing from you and I usually respond to comments.
> 
> I know I've been away for what seems like a long time, and I owe you guys some chapters for some of my WIP's. The good news is that as I said this story is mostly completed, which is not the way I usually write. So updates should remain consistent and I should still be able to work on other stories like To Save a Dragon and How Writing Fanfiction Save Me as well, with a few events interspersed in between.
> 
> Speaking of events :) I wanted to let everyone know that Gratsu Weekend is coming up from March 1-4. Check out our collection [Gratsu Weekend 2019](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Gratsu_Weekend_2019/profile) for more information. We'd love it if you all took part!


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